At least seven local pharmacies are stocking the anti-overdose medication Narcan, and more are being encouraged to keep the drug on hand to supply customers seeking it for themselves or loved ones addicted to opioids.

Carolyn Wilson, coordinator of the Groton Adolescent Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition, or GASP, said Thursday that she has identified six pharmacies in the Groton-New London area and one in Norwich that have Narcan.

The GASP coalition is urging more pharmacies to order the drug, and has offered to pay the $50 fee for the online course pharmacists are required to take to be able to provide it directly to customers upon request.

“The GASP coalition was curious to see how accessible the drug was, and wanted to start applying pressure to places to supply it,” said Wilson, also a health program coordinator at the Ledge Light Health District.

Ledge Light is the public health agency for Groton, New London, Ledyard, East Lyme and Waterford.

Among pharmacies stocking it are: Simply Pharmacy in Waterford; The Medicine Shoppe, which has stores in New London and Old Saybrook; Quality Care Drug in New London; McQuade’s Marketplace Pharmacy in Mystic; and Greenville Drug Store in Norwich.

All six stores have pharmacists who have completed the online course and will be able to sell it directly to customers, Wilson said.

Big Y Pharmacy in Groton also stocks Narcan and can sell it to customers who have a prescription from their doctor because pharmacists there have not taken the course, she said.

Last month Walgreen's announced it will have the drug available at their stores in Connecticut and 34 other states by the end of this year.

Nagy Wassef, owner of The Medicine Shoppe stores, said one pharmacist at his New London store has completed the course and one at the Old Saybrook location is taking it.

Both are awaiting a National Provider Identification number that will enable them to sell Narcan directly to customers.

At present, he said, his stores can sell the drug to customers with a doctor’s prescription.

“So far we’ve only had two prescriptions for it,” Wassef said, adding that he began stocking Narcan about two weeks ago. “But I would expect there may be more demand when people can get it directly from the pharmacist.”

The Narcan supplies he receives generally are effective for at least a year to a year and a half before they reach their expiration date, he said.

A state law that took effect in September allows pharmacists to provide Narcan once they complete the online course. 

As of Friday, 155 pharmacists across the state have completed the course, according to the state Department of Consumer Protection.

Wassef said he believes Narcan should be accessible at his pharmacy “because it’s a life-saving drug.”

“I know the importance of it,” he said.

Police and EMTs began carrying Narcan more than a year ago in response to the growing number of heroin overdoses across the country.

Several patients in southeastern Connecticut were given Narcan by first responders during a spike in overdoses earlier this winter.

Lori Lord, manager of Greenville Drug, said she has not supplied Narcan directly to any individual patients because of a problem with insurance coverage.

Although the state made it legal for pharmacists to provide the drug directly to customers, she said, she has been rejected as a registered provider when applying for reimbursement, even though she has registered and received a National Provider Identification number.

Without insurance coverage, customers must pay $142 for a dose of Narcan, she said.

She said state officials need to fix this problem if they want Narcan to be more accessible to those who need it.

Lora Rae, spokeswoman for the consumer protection department, said her agency is aware of the problem and is working on a solution.

She also advised people having problems getting coverage for Narcan to contact the state Office of the Healthcare Advocate at (866) 466-4446 or by email at healthcare.advocate@ct.gov.

Donna Tommelleo, spokeswoman for the state Department of Insurance, said a state law enacted last year requires insurance coverage for Narcan, although some plans may have copayments, deductibles and other limitations.

A recent department survey of all major insurance carriers confirmed that they are covering prescriptions of Narcan from pharmacists without prior authorization from a physician, she said.

In addition, a bill pending in the legislature will further strengthen coverage.

Tommelleo said her department has not received any complaints about coverage being denied, but urges anyone with complaints or concerns to contact the insurance department's Consumer Affairs Unit by emailing cic.ca@ct.gov or calling (800) 203-3447 or (860) 297-3900.

People also can visit www.ct.gov/cid and click on "Complaint/Question" in the upper left corner for an online complaint form.

In a separate effort to make Narcan more available, Susan Clark-Levin, a volunteer with the state Department of Public Health’s Open Access CT Narcan Initiative, has been distributing free Narcan and overdose kits to about a dozen homes for recovering addicts in Groton, Norwich and New London.

She also has supplied free overdose kits to about 10 local pharmacies.

The kits contain nasal atomizers that enable the injectable form of the drug to be administered through the nostrils, plus gloves, alcohol pads, a face mask for rescue breathing and instructions in Spanish and English.

“I’m doing this for the families and the loved ones of addicts,” said Clark-Levin, who works part time at Stonington Institute. “This could prevent someone from dying from an overdose and never having the chance to get clean.”

Pharmacies interested in obtaining the kits should contact Clark-Levin at (860) 287-2527 or by email at sueclarklevin@yahoo.com.

The kits are being distributed to independent pharmacies statewide by the Northeast Pharmacy Service Corp., according to Karen Hekeler, pharmacy consultant for the organization, which represents 116 independent pharmacies in Connecticut.

She said she obtained 750 of the kits on Thursday and began giving them to pharmacies.

"I've also been encouraging pharmacists to take the course," she said. "A lot of the independent pharmacies really want to help."

j.benson@theday.com