New California Law Requires Providers to Prescribe Overdose Reversing Drug Naloxone

California Assembly Bill 2760 went into effect on January 1, 2019. That bill requires providers to offer a prescription for the overdose reversing drug, naloxone, when the following conditions are present:

•  The prescription dosage for the patient is 90 or more ME per day; and/or
•  Opioid medication is prescribed concurrently with benzodiazepine; and/or
• The patient presents with an increased risk for overdose, including a patient with a history of overdose, a patient with a history of substance use disorder, or a patient at risk for returning to a high dose of opioid medication to which the patient is no longer tolerant.

The new law also requires providers to educate patients receiving a prescription for naloxone regarding overdose prevention and how to use naloxone. Naloxone comes in several different brands and can be administered via a nasal spray, injection or auto-injector. Providers are also required to educate one or more persons that a patient designates regarding overdose and use of naloxone.

If you are a Spine & Nerve Diagnostic Center patient on opioids, you are already familiar with naloxone, as it has been prescribed by our providers for opioid users for over a year. We strongly believe in responsible pain management, which includes offering other types of treatment other than opioids. But for those patients on opioids, we offer naloxone for our patients’ safety. If you have any questions about naloxone, please ask your provider at your next appointment.