A local legislator is trying to provide a new tool in the state that he says will save lives when individuals overdose on drugs.

Rep. Allen Treadaway, R-Morris, has introduced House Bill 208, which would make it legal for doctors or dentists to prescribe Naloxone hydrochloride to anyone at risk of an opiate-related drug overdose, or to a family member, friend or law enforcement officer.

Naloxone, better known as Narcan, instantly reverses respiratory failure in a person who has overdosed on heroin, morphine, Oxycontin or other opiates.

“Right now, heroin has dropped to about $15 on the street, and it’s so pure people are overdosing at alarming rates,” said Treadaway. “Narcan is a miracle drug. It is used daily right now [by medics] but it is not available for law enforcement officers, loved ones or friends.”

Treadaway, a captain with the Birmingham

Police Department, said all law enforcement officers should have a choice to carry Narcan with them because they are often the first to arrive at the scene of a drug overdose.

The law would allow law enforcement officers to carry Narcan, but would not require them to carry it.

The bill also provides immunity to doctors who prescribe Narcan and to individuals who administer it.

In addition, the bill would require the Alabama Department of Public Health to approve a training curriculum to teach law enforcement officers how to administer Narcan.

“Alabama is ranked number one in prescribing painkillers in the United States. We’ve got a problem here. If (Narcan) saves lives, if it reverses respiratory failure, then it’s worth it,” said Treadaway. “Twenty-eight other states have this law. The numbers have proved it saves lives.”

Sen. Jabo Waggoner, R-Vestavia Hills, is sponsoring the bill in the State Senate.