Veterans can buy the opioid medication naloxone at CVS but not the VA. A new, bipartisan bill aims to change that.

• A new bipartisan bill proposes free naloxone for veterans at VA clinics.
• The overdose-reversal medication is only available to VA patients now with a prescription.
• More access to naloxone has helped drive a national decline in opioid-related deaths.

Military veterans may be able to buy naloxone over the counter at CVS or Walgreens, but not at their local VA clinic. A new bipartisan bill in Congress aims to change that by providing the overdose-reversal drug for free at VA facilities, and without a prescription.

The bill would allow veterans and their caregivers free access to naloxone, the opioid overdose medication, which has only been provided with a prescription.

Lawmakers backing the bill say the change could remove a small but critical barrier to overdose prevention for veterans, a population that faces elevated risks tied to chronic pain, mental health challenges, and substance abuse disorders — even as nationwide overdose deaths have begun to decline.

"While we've made great strides towards ending the substance use epidemic, far too many veterans are still losing their lives due to overdoses," said New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat who is co-sponsoring the bill with Idaho Republican Sen. Mike Crapo in a rare bipartisan effort, in a statement to Business Insider. "That is unacceptable, and it's imperative that we explore every avenue to make life-saving treatments more accessible at the VA."

Naloxone, also known by the brand name Narcan, has proliferated across the country in the wake of the opioid epidemic, which peaked in 2022. It comes in a nasal spray or injectable form, reversing otherwise deadly overdoses for heroin, fentanyl, and other prescription drugs in just a couple of minutes, if administered quickly.

The bill is the latest step in a yearslong effort to combat veteran overdose deaths, though it comes as US deaths from the opioid epidemic have started to decline.

The dropping death toll is in large part due to better prevention efforts — last year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noted a 24% drop in death rates for the previous year. That drop was in large part thanks to the more widespread use and availability of naloxone.

According to a 2023 study from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, over 632,000 veterans reported an opioid-related substance abuse problem. That's roughly on par with problems facing the wider US population, the study showed.

The FDA began allowing over-the-counter Naloxone sales in 2023. The spray version is sold in pharmacies and grocery stores across America, and costs anywhere from $30 to over $100.

Active duty troops have also struggled with the opioid epidemic — a new law in 2024 mandated the services begin tracking overdoses of all kinds, including non-fatal ones, to improve prevention efforts and provide troops with naloxone doses to prevent deaths. That law was spurred by a Pentagon report that found fentanyl overdose deaths in the military doubled between 2017 and 2021.

The bill comes as costs for veterans' healthcare have dramatically increased in recent years for the Department of Veterans Affairs with the 2022 PACT Act, which expanded coverage for decades of veterans exposed to toxins and harmful chemicals at an estimated cost of $800 billion over a decade. Advocates lobbied for years for the expansion after troops returning from the Global War on Terror developed illnesses linked to military burn pits. The measure also expanded access for Vietnam veterans exposed to dangerous substances like the herbicide Agent Orange, known to cause cancer and birth defects.

Editor's note: This article discusses substance abuse. Americans struggling with it can call 1-800-662-HELP for confidential and free help from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration National Helpline. Veterans and their family members can dial 988 for the Veterans Crisis Line.