Veterans can buy the opioid medication naloxone at CVS but not the VA. A new, bipartisan bill aims to change that.
Source: Business Insider
Feb 7, 2026, 4:06 AM ET
Military veterans may be able to buy naloxone over the counter at CVS or Walgreens, but not at their local VA clinic. A new bipartisan bill in Congress aims to change that by providing the overdose-reversal drug for free at VA facilities, and without a prescription.
The bill would allow veterans and their caregivers free access to naloxone, the opioid overdose medication, which has only been provided with a prescription.
Lawmakers backing the bill say the change could remove a small but critical barrier to overdose prevention for veterans, a population that faces elevated risks tied to chronic pain, mental health challenges, and substance abuse disorders — even as nationwide overdose deaths have begun to decline.
"While we've made great strides towards ending the substance use epidemic, far too many veterans are still losing their lives due to overdoses," said New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat who is co-sponsoring the bill with Idaho Republican Sen. Mike Crapo in a rare bipartisan effort, in a statement to Business Insider. "That is unacceptable, and it's imperative that we explore every avenue to make life-saving treatments more accessible at the VA."
Read more: https://www.businessinsider.com/veterans-naloxone-va-clinics-bipartisan-bill-2026-2
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