The County of Monterey Emergency Medical Services has launched a new program to expand emergency responder distribution of buprenorphine to reduce opioid overdoses, the agency recently announced.

According to Monterey County EMS, buprenorphine is one of the most effective treatments for opioid use disorder as it not only reduces opioid withdrawals and cravings but it also reduces the risk of overdose fatalities by up to 50 percent. Narcan, another life-saving medication, is effective at combatting narcotic overdoses but does not address withdrawal symptoms.

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Helena Getahun-Hawkins is an intern at Bay City News through Stanford’s Rebele Fellowship. She’s a rising junior at Stanford majoring in International Relations and minoring in Spanish. She writes for The Stanford Daily under the campus life desk and was most recently managing editor of the Daily’s podcast section. She enjoys covering stories that center around education policy, immigration policy, and identity. Outside of journalism she enjoys drawing, yoga, listening to music, and watching TV.