Customs and Border Patrol Agents Among First to Carry Life-Saving Opioid Treatment

The agents at the San Ysidro border will carry the drug.

Officials at the San Ysidro border have begun carrying life-saving medicine as a part of a new pilot program.

The San Ysidro border port of entry is one of several locations picked by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency for its pilot program that equips officers with Naloxone, a drug that treat opioid overdoses.

Naloxone is a generic form of the drug known as Narcan, a nasal spray that can be given to victims of an opiate overdose.

The agency is the first federal law enforcement agency to initiate a program like this.

"CBP officers are the first to encounter thousands of individuals at border crossings, so it is imperative to me that we train our officers on how and when to use this potentially life-saving countermeasure,” said Commissioner R. Gil Kerlikowske in a statement.

As a part of the program, officers at select locations receive training to recognize signs and symptoms of an overdose and learn how to administer Naloxone. They also receive CPR certification.

The year-long program will also include several other ports of entry like El Paso, Fort Lauderdale International Airport, John F. Kennedy International Airport, Laredo, San Luis, San Ysidro, and Seattle/Blaine.

The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department became the first law enforcement agency in California to test a similar program with cops carrying Naloxone in July for a six month period.

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