Imagine this: a holiday shopper collapses near the checkout line. They’re not breathing. A trained employee retrieves NARCAN® Nasal Spray, administers it and within seconds, restores the victim’s breathing and buys precious time until help arrives. One simple act turns what could have been a tragedy into a story of survival and a second chance.

It’s a dramatic moment—but not an unlikely one. The holiday season packs malls and stores with millions of visitors. With more people comes greater risk of medical emergencies, including overdoses. We also know drug- and alcohol-related deaths spike during the holidays.

NARCAN® Nasal Spray is designed to reverse an opioid overdose in minutes, including those caused by fentanyl. Making life-saving treatments like NARCAN® Nasal Spray available in retail environments could be the difference between life or death for customers. Retailers already provide fire extinguishers, AEDs, first-aid kits—why not NARCAN® Nasal Spray? Thanks to its over-the-counter availability, NARCAN® Nasal Spray can easily be incorporated into retail safety protocols to help protect employees, customers and communities.

Many retailers recognize this. The National Retail Federation recently noted that “many retail companies are already active in this area and are undertaking efforts to combat the opioid epidemic.” Many hesitate to make naloxone widely available due to liability concerns while nearly half of frontline retail and distribution employees say they’ve seen an overdose reversed or have administered the medication themselves.

The need to expand access and availability of naloxone is urgent. According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2023 more than 40% of overdoses occurred with a bystander present. Retailers, with their high foot traffic and nationwide reach, are uniquely positioned to help.

Here’s how:

1. Stock NARCAN® Nasal Spray in high-visibility locations. Place naloxone in break rooms, security offices or even in customer-facing first-aid stations. Just as defibrillators are common in many stores today, NARCAN® Nasal Spray should be part of the safety inventory.
2. Train staff on overdose recognition and response. A short training module can teach employees how to spot opioid overdose signs (e.g., unresponsiveness, slow or absent breathing, pinpoint pupils) and how to administer nasal naloxone.
3. Promote awareness in-store. As with fire extinguishers and defibrillators, signage or QR codes can inform shoppers and staff that naloxone is on-hand.

During the holiday season, with millions more people shopping at stores and malls, the chance of encountering a medical emergency increases exponentially. Adding NARCAN® Nasal Spray to publicly available emergency response kits provides employees and fellow customers a fighting chance to give the greatest gift of all – a second chance at life. 

Learn more about opioid poisoning risks in your workplace and how NARCAN® Nasal Spray can help save lives at NARCAN.com/workplace.