Education

California has pursued several public education campaigns, including a youth opioid education and awareness campaign, with an emphasis on fentanyl awareness. 

Additionally, the Campus Opioid Act, signed by Governor Newsom in 2022, requires that every public college campus in California distribute a federally approved opioid overdose reversal medication like naloxone, and include information about opioid overdoses in their orientation process. Building on this effort, Governor Newsom signed AB 2429 (Alvarez), mandating fentanyl education be included in health classes. 

Last year, the Governor launched opioids.ca.gov – a comprehensive website with resources for Californians. The website serves as a reliable source of information on prevention, data, treatment, and support where Californians can also access information related to the state’s use of opioid settlement funds and efforts to hold drug-traffickers accountable.

Prevention

The state has gone well beyond education, taking an all-hands-on-deck approach to the overdose crisis. A history of racial and economic disparities have helped drive the opioid crisis, heavily impacting access to lifesaving medications and treatments. Recognizing that, California is working to ensure that those most in need of support and help can access the necessary resources to help themselves and their loved ones and help prevent overdose-related deaths. 

Earlier this year, the Governor announced the launch of a CalRx®-branded over-the-counter (OTC) naloxone HCL nasal spray, 4 mg, which is available for free to eligible organizations through the Naloxone Distribution Project (NDP). This follows the state’s contract with Amneal Pharmaceuticals to purchase an OTC naloxone nasal spray product through CalRx®’s Naloxone Access Initiative at a significantly lower price. Through the NDP, the state has distributed more than 4 million kits, saving more than 285,000 lives. 

California is also focused on getting drugs, including illicit fentanyl, off the streets and out of California’s neighborhoods. Last year, Governor Newsom expanded the California National Guard’s work to prevent drug trafficking by transnational criminal organizations, launching a Counter Drug Task Force that operates across the state. The task force has been invaluable in helping federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies – seizing 8 million pills in the first six months of 2024.