Naloxone will soon be able to be sold without a prescription in Swedish pharmacies, following a decision by the Swedish Medicines Agency. Making naloxone available over the counter is an important step in the government’s work to reduce drug-related deaths.
– I am extremely happy to be able to announce today that naloxone will soon be available for sale without a prescription in Swedish pharmacies. It will save lives, says Social Affairs Minister Jakob Forssmed.
The Swedish Medicines Agency has decided to grant an application from a company to supply naloxone as a nasal spray for non-prescription sale in Sweden. This means that in the near future naloxone will be able to be purchased by private individuals, at Swedish pharmacies. Sweden will then be one of the first countries in Europe where this is possible.
Opioids explain a clear majority of the drug-related deaths that occur in Sweden, and most opioid poisonings occur outside of healthcare settings. Therefore, it is crucial to make naloxone widely available, something that the government has worked for and is working for in various ways, including through a mission to the National Board of Health and Welfare that will be reported shortly.
Through non-prescription, more people can get access to naloxone. It can be regarding relatives and close friends, or individuals who want to buy naloxone at a pharmacy to have it available at home, at the workplace or in other contexts where a risk situation may arise. It can also be users who are not in contact with healthcare and who want to have the nasal spray at hand if needed.
