Press Releases
03/20/2019
STATE ANNOUNCES THIRD EXTENSION OF AMPHASTAR REBATES FOR NALOXONE PURCHASES
Governor Ned Lamont and Attorney General William Tong today announced the third extension of a rebate agreement with California drug-manufacturer Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. for the purchase of naloxone by the State of Connecticut or local municipalities and town agencies. The two-year agreement will extend the $6 rebate on every purchase of naloxone—also known by the brand name Narcan.
The rebate agreement was first entered into in 2016, and to date has saved the state and municipalities approximately $150,000.
“Addiction is a disease that impacts people of every background – it does not discriminate based on income, education, age, race, gender, or anything else,” said Governor Lamont. “We want to increase access to this life-saving medication, to continue helping people overcome this disease and hopefully get on a path of recovery.”
"Naloxone saves lives and we must do all we can to ensure its availability. Since 2016, this rebate agreement has saved approximately $150,000—small, yet significant savings, particularly to smaller communities who have been burdened by the crushing costs of responding to this public health crisis. The Office of the Attorney General continues to aggressively pursue its lawsuit against Purdue Pharma and the multistate investigation of the entire opioid and addiction industries to obtain remediation for treatment of the impact of opioids and prevention to stop the spread of this epidemic," said Attorney General Tong.
In September 2015, the Office of the Attorney General sent a letter to Amphastar's chief executive officer questioning why its price for naloxone had recently increased unexpectedly. In the letter, the state requested the opportunity to explore options with the company to address the increased costs in light of fiscal constraints and the need for access to the life-saving drug.
Naloxone is a medication used to counter the effects of an opioid overdose. In recent years, Connecticut has enacted and begun to implement new laws increasing the drug's availability to law enforcement, first responders and others in response to a nationwide epidemic of opioid abuse, including increased rates of heroin overdoses and prescription opioid drug abuse.
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