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Butler Area School Board considers having naloxone/Narcan available to district school nurses

BUTLER COUNTY, Pa. — The Butler Area School Board is considering having naloxone (brand name Narcan) available to school nurses and police in case of an emergency in the school district.

The Butler County district attorney supports the proposal and said it could save lives.

“I think it’s smart by the school board to do that. They have been very lucky so far that there haven’t been any overdoses in schools in Butler school district,” said Butler County District Attorney Rich Goldinger.

Goldinger said he’s not aware of any situation that has involved fentanyl inside any school in Butler County, but he thinks this proposal is a proactive way to protect students.

“There’s no secret at this point that we have a fentanyl problem, not just in Butler County or western Pennsylvania, but it’s everywhere,” said Goldinger.

In October, the district attorney sent a letter to school leaders to warn kids of the potential threat of fentanyl in Halloween candy.

Goldinger said there were reports of teenagers in the U.S. eating rainbow fentanyl that they thought were Skittles and becoming extremely sick.

“Kids are being targeted at this point for making fentanyl appear like candy,” said Goldinger.

He said the majority of drug overdoses in Butler County have involved fentanyl.

The school board plans to vote on the proposal in December.

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