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Episode details

World Service,28 Jul 2026,17 mins

Follow the money: The antidote economy

Business Daily

Available for over a year

**This episode of Business Daily begins with a real call to 911** There is an antidote for an opioid overdose. It costs a few dollars. The nasal spray technology means it can be administered without needles and can restart a person's breathing within minutes. So why doesn't it always reach the person on the floor? We following the money through the antidote economy. A life-saving drug that costs pennies to make sold over the counter for $52. But when drug companies were sued for their role in America's opioid crisis, some pharmaceutical companies' settlements included paying out using antidote kits valued at $125. Who profits, who pays, and what determines whether an overdose kit is ever in the room when it is needed? Presenter: Sam Fenwick Producers: Josh Martin and Matt Lines (Photo: Two naloxone nasal spray medications used for opioid overdose sit on a brown table on 11 September 2024. Credit: Peg Alexander/BBC Images) You can email the team: businessdaily@bbc.co.uk

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