The Vermont Department of Corrections says it plans to expand the number of staff who carries the opiate overdose reversal drug naloxone.
The Burlington Free Press reports Commissioner Michael Touchette says the state's prison system will go from 284 correctional officers trained to use the medication to 774 by Friday.
Touchette says the expansion comes after the prisons saw at least five overdoses since July, which is an unusually high number.
He says having more correctional officers equipped with naloxone will cut down on response time if an overdose happens.
He says the expansion is "really about saving lives."
Copyright AP - Associated Press
