All Hillsborough patrol deputies to carry Narcan, sheriff says

TAMPA, Fla. - Hillsborough County deputies will have another tool with them to help save lives while on patrol.

Sheriff Chad Chronister says there's no downplaying how rapidly Narcan can reverse opioid overdoses.

"We have seen first-hand instances where a victim was overdosing, their heart was not beating," Chronister detailed. 

Wednesday, the sheriff announced all of his deputies will be carrying the nasal spray by the end of the week. Also referred to as naloxone, the drug can revive people who have overdosed on heroin, fentanyl or other potent opioids. 

"We were approved for 1,100 kits, which amounts to 2,300 doses of Narcan," he said. "This is in addition to the 3,800 doses of Narcan our partners at Hillsborough County Fire Rescue were approved for."

In the last year, Hillsborough County has seen a significant drop in overdose-related deaths.

"We've deployed Narcan 48 times, and out of the 48 times, 43 of those times we've been successful in reversing the overdose," the sheriff said. 

Typically, these moments are caught on a deputy's body cam videos. A rock bottom moment, Chronister says, but sometimes a wake-up call. 

"To get the help they need that's available to them," he said. To break free from the grasp of drug addiction." 

The need for the overdose-reversal drug in Florida has skyrocketed in recent years. According to the Florida Department of Health, the opioid death rate has tripled since the start of the 2000s.

In 2017, emergency responders used Narcan to treat more than 45,000 for drug overdoses – but each year thousands in Florida die from opioid overdose. Last year alone, opioids claimed the lives of more than 3,000 people in Florida. Among the top killers were illicit drugs like heroin, fentanyl, as well as prescription drugs like oxycodone and hydrocodone.

It's not just for overdose incidences. It's also needed to save the lives of deputies, which happened in Lake County this past may. 

A Lake County sheriff’s deputy was revived with Narcan and at least one firefighter was given the overdose reversal drug after exposure to what officials believe to be fentanyl during a traffic stop. Fentanyl is up to 50 times more potent than heroin.

"In cases where a first responder [or] even a K-9 is exposed to a drug like fentanyl, doses of Narcan will be immediately available on scene to counter the effects of exposure," he said. 

And once administered, the medicine takes effect almost immediately.

"You can deploy this within seconds and it takes moments for it to work," Chronister said. "It truly is a miracle drug."