FDA panel backs allowing a naloxone spray to be sold over-the-counter

A naloxone nasal spray should be sold over-the-counter, a panel of the Food and Drug Administration's outside advisers unanimously voted Wednesday, clearing the way for the regulator to broaden access to reversing drug overdoses.

The spray works by temporarily reversing the effects of opioids, ranging from prescription painkillers to heroin to fentanyl. When administered soon after an overdose, it can avoid brain damage and death until paramedics arrive.

The vote follows a daylong joint meeting of two FDA advisory panels to weigh a request by Emergent BioSolutions, the manufacturer of Narcan, to sell the product over the counter.