ROCHESTER, Minn. - For some, the isolation and stressors of the pandemic can fuel drug addiction, but the pandemic is also hindering people's access to a life-saving drug.
Naloxone is the antidote for opioid overdoses, but Mayo Clinic is concerned about awareness and accessibility during the pandemic.
Dr. Bonnie Milas is an anesthesiologist. She revived her two sons many times after overdoses, but ultimately she tragically lost both of them. She's now an advocate for teaching others to administer nalaxone. Although her family's sotry didn't have a positive ending, she wants others to have a different outcome. "Despite the fact that I lost both of my sons, that any time that they might be revived, that was another chance of recovery. It was one more chance, one more chance, one more chance," she explains.
According to the CDC, between May 2019 and May 2020 was the deadliest year for opioid overdoses in U.S. history. 81,000 Americans died.
