I have Narcan in my house. Now you can, too.

“Do you know where I can get Narcan? I am going on the senior trip, and I want to take some with me,” a fellow physician mom asked me. I did, and by the time she boarded the plane, this mom had three Narcan nasal spray dispensers in her handbag and a quick primer on how to administer them — along with some ibuprofen, acetaminophen and a few bandages. She was prepared.

In March, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that it had approved the naloxone nasal spray, Narcan, for purchase without a prescription. The nasal spray is used to reverse an opioid overdose in a matter of minutes (Narcan binds to opioid receptors and can block the effects of opioids, such as heroin, fentanyl or prescription opioids, and can quickly restore normal breathing due to an overdose). This nasal spray now can be sold directly to consumers in places like drugstores, convenience stores, grocery stores and gas stations, as well as online.

This couldn’t have happened at a more important time. According to provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 30,000 more people in the United States died from a drug overdose in 2021, compared with 2019, bringing the total number of fatalities to more than 100,000 people. This coincides with a growing mental health crisis and an increase in substance use before, and during, the COVID-19 pandemic.

As an emergency room physician, mom, and now regional director at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I know these numbers are hard to absorb but all too real. I have seen firsthand the increasing frequency of overdoses and the risk that sometimes reversal agents have not been administered in time. As a new attending physician working in an ER on Staten Island more than a decade ago, I revived patients who had unintentionally overdosed on heroin and tried to save teenagers who had experimented with pills. What I didn’t realize then was how long this epidemic would last, and how much worse things would get.

Getting naloxone into the hands of parents, teachers, coaches and even young people — and having it on hand in clubs, hotels and restaurants — will save lives. Here’s how we can be sure: A CDC study found that, in 46 percent of the fatal overdoses that occurred in 2021, a bystander was present, someone who had the potential to intervene and prevent the person from dying.

This resulted in tens of thousands of parents, friends and loved ones helplessly waiting for an ambulance to arrive when a lifesaving intervention could have been used. That is not the case anymore.

The Biden-Harris administration has taken bold action to prevent and treat substance use disorder at its roots and to keep illicit drugs off the streets. Importantly, it has maintained a flow of resources to local communities most in need, with efforts such as last September’s awarding of $1.6 billion for all states and territories to address addiction and the opioid crisis.

Nonetheless, we still have a long way to go. The overdose epidemic has left no corner of this country untouched. Since 2000, more than 1 million lives have been lost to overdose. Millions of people continue to struggle with the disease that causes them to use drugs, despite negative consequences. And for every life lost, and every person with substance use disorder, tens of millions more struggle as family and friends.

As a mom of teenagers, I value nothing more than keeping my kids safe. The over-the-counter naloxone will make that possible. As an emergency physician, I understand how many lives will be saved simply by having Narcan available when it is needed. Yet our medical interventions can only be as efficacious as our policies that deliver them to those in need. Now, with this decision, the policy is meeting the moment. It is time for all of us — parents, siblings, community members and friends — to understand the opportunity in front of us and arm ourselves with this simple tool that quite literally can save a life.

To find out more, we encourage you to talk with your local pharmacist, health care provider or visit https://www.hhs.gov/overdose-prevention/.

Dara Kass, MD, is the regional director for Region 2 of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services — serving New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and eight Federally recognized Tribal Nations.