Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin signed two of his substance abuse initiatives into law Tuesday, one to regulate Suboxone clinics and one to make overdose-reversing drugs available without a prescription.
Naloxone, often sold under the brand name Narcan, can halt an opioid or heroin overdose if given during the overdose, potentially saving a person's life.
It now will be available without a prescription (SB 431), so that family members and friends of people battling addiction can have it on hand, just in case.
Last year Tomblin signed a bill allowing law enforcement to carry naloxone.
Tomblin also signed a bill (SB 454) Tuesday that would regulate Suboxone and methadone clinics, which use medication to treat opioid abuse.
The law will require clinics to be licensed and to offer counseling in addition to medication.
Tomblin signed the bills the day after he spoke at the National Rx Drug Abuse and Heroin Summit in Atlanta.
"These two pieces of legislation are another step forward in our effort to help West Virginians find help and hope here in the Mountain State," Tomblin said in a prepared statement. "I appreciate the Legislature's overwhelming support of these initiatives."