Lawmakers and staff on Capitol Hill participated in the second annual opioid reversal training session as part of a bipartisan initiative to combat opioid overdoses in America.

The training comes off the heels of the Food and Drug Administration approving the first over-the-counter opioid reversal drug, known as naloxone and often marketed as NARCAN, in nasal spray form in March.

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The training was hosted by the Bipartisan Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Task Force and featured speakers like Reps. David Trone (D-MD), Annie Kuster (D-NH), and Buddy Carter (R-GA), as well as National Drug Control Policy director Dr. Rahul Gupta.

Data and training were presented by Georgetown University medical students as part of an initiative called Hoya DOPE (Drug Overdose Prevention and Education).

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fentanyl overdose became the leading cause of death among Americans ages 18-45.

The initiative is part of a push to promote over 70 bills from the task force, with an ultimate goal of making sure every federal building and, eventually, every business in the country is stocked with naloxone in some form. Trone said that 20% of all opioid fatalities could be saved with similar training.

“Naloxone is critical to saving tens of thousands of lives today, right now,” Gupta said. “This is an opportunity for businesses and others to make sure that it is housed there. There should be no business that does not have this life-saving drug available; there should be no school that does not have this available.”

Trone and Kuster shared personal stories about their families’ experiences with opioids, where Trone lost a nephew to a fentanyl overdose, and Kuster’s brother developed an opioid addiction through prescribed medication after surgery.

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“Every corner of this country is impacted, and too many people are dying,” Kuster said.

Carter, a pharmacist, opened his backpack to show those in attendance that he brings naloxone everywhere he goes, comparing the sought-after proliferation of the drug to syrup of ipecac, a vomit-inducing drug once stocked in emergency kits in case of accidental poisoning.

“Naloxone should be in every emergency box in America,” Carter said. “It should be in every medicine cabinet in America now.”

The Georgia Republican explained that the overdose issue is twofold: The open Southern border where fentanyl is coming entering American society and the amount of fentanyl already in the country. He explained that naloxone is one of the ways to combat the latter.

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Carter also said that addiction needs to be treated as a disease primarily, noting that it took him some time to come around to that position.

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“I’ve seen what addiction can do. I’ve seen it ruin families, I’ve seen it ruin careers,” he said. “You know, addiction is a disease. It took me a while to understand that. When I was in pharmacy school, I really couldn’t get my arms around that. But as time went on, and as I began to see it firsthand and understand it better, it is a disease, and it’s got to be addressed that way.”

The initiative comes as the Biden administration is pushing employers to keep naloxone in the workplace, comparing it to fire emergency preparedness like blankets and extinguishers.