When a public policy saves lives, is wildly cost-effective and enjoys bipartisan support, you might expect politicians to embrace it. Yet the Trump administration is proposing to slash a $56 million federal grant that helps first responders and communities access naloxone, the overdose-reversal medication credited with saving thousands of lives every year.

Meanwhile, lawmakers in states, including Idaho, have acted to restrict naloxone distribution to first responders only, ignoring evidence that laypeople, not paramedics or cops, are most likely to prevent a fatal opioid overdose. 

These moves aren’t just cruel, they’re fiscally reckless.

Sold under the brand name Narcan, naloxone is a miracle of modern public health. This opioid antagonist is administered as a nasal spray that blocks opioids’ effects, instantly reversing overdose symptoms with a more than a 90 percent success rate, even when administered by untrained bystanders. It is non-addictive, safe, does not affect non-opioid users and is shelf-stable for years. Best of all, it’s cheap, costing mere pennies to manufacture per dose. 

Increased access to naloxone, which became an over-the-counter medication in 2023, is a

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