Ohio Sheriff Refuses to Equip Deputies with Narcan

Butler County Sheriff Richard K. Jones insists he is not heartless but says requiring deputies to administer the remedy puts them in danger and the cost of repeatedly treating people with Narcan is “sucking the taxpayers dry.”

Butler County Sheriff Richard K. Jones (Photo: Butler County SO)Butler County Sheriff Richard K. Jones (Photo: Butler County SO)

The sheriff of one opioid-ravaged Ohio county is refusing to equip his deputies with Narcan, the drug that has saved the lives of countless overdosing addicts.

Butler County Sheriff Richard K. Jones insists he is not heartless but says requiring deputies to administer the remedy puts them in danger and the cost of repeatedly treating people with Narcan is “sucking the taxpayers dry.”

"All we're doing is reviving them, we’re not curing them," Jones told NBC News on Friday. "One person we know has been revived 20 separate times."

But, Jones hastened to add, "We don’t go there and let people die."

"Here in Ohio, the live squads (paramedics) get in there about the same time and they’re more equipped to use Narcan," he said. "The people who use drugs don’t usually like the police and they turn violent once they're revived."

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