Following is testimony given by Mark O’Brien, Director of Opioid Overdose Prevention and Treatment for the Baltimore City Health Department. The statement was presented to the House Health and Government Operations Committee on behalf of Baltimore City Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen on February 21, 2017.

Chair Pendergrass, Vice-Chair Bromwell, and Members of the Committee,

Thank you for the opportunity to testify in support of HB 791.

My name is Mark O’Brien, and I am the Director of Opioid Overdose Prevention and Treatment for the Baltimore City Health Department.

I am here today on behalf of Baltimore City Health Commissioner Dr. Wen.

Maryland is in the midst of an epidemic of opioid overdose deaths with over 2000 deaths in 2016. Baltimore City has been hit hard too with over 650 deaths.

These are our family, friends, and neighbors dying.

One thing we know about our state is that Marylanders look out for each other. That’s why we have to get naloxone into as many hands as possible, so that all of us can be first responders in the event of an overdose.

I want to thank the committee and this legislature for the legislation passed two years ago to authorize standing order prescriptions for naloxone.

Because of that legislation, in Baltimore City over 20,000 people have been trained to recognize an overdose and respond with naloxone. Over 800 lives have been saved.

But we must do more. It is unconscionable that people would continue to die when a medication is available that anyone can use to save a life.

One huge barrier that keeps us from getting naloxone into more hands is the training requirement that HB 791 would eliminate.

Several other states, including our neighbors in Virginia and Pennsylvania, have made naloxone available essentially over the counter by issuing standing order prescriptions without a training requirement. It’s time for Maryland to follow suit.

The training is time-consuming and unnecessary. It uses staff time and resources that could be used to purchase and distribute naloxone. Eliminating the training requirement will increase resources that can be devoted to purchasing medication.

We want to empower and educate people to respond to an overdose. Many people need minimal instruction. Others may ask for more instruction. HB 791 gives our trainers flexibility to meet these needs.

This medication is safe. It has no effect on a person who has not taken opioids. I inadvertently gave it to myself while doing a training in Baltimore. I can verify that nothing happened.

It’s also incredibly easy to use. We can trust our outreach teams and pharmacists to inform people as needed. In fact, my colleague is here to show you how astonishingly easy it is to save a life with naloxone.