Narcan maker says anti-opioid nasal spray will soon be available over the counter

Americans may soon no longer need a prescription to buy a life-saving nasal spray for people who overdose on opioids.

Emergent BioSolutions on Tuesday said the Food and Drug Administration has fast-tracked its application for an over-the-counter version of Narcan, a nasal-spray form of naloxone. Approved in 2015, Narcan and its somewhat less expensive generic competitors are widely used by first responders and laypeople to treat known or suspected opioid overdoses that kill tens of thousands of Americans in the U.S. each year. 

The FDA's priority review means the agency could approve the spray to be sold in drugstores in late March of next year, the Gaithersburg, Maryland-based company stated in a news release.