TORONTO - An Ontario music festival has reversed a policy that would have banned attendees from bringing their own injectable naloxone kits, saying patrons will be able to trade syringes of the opioid overdose antidote for a nasal spray that has the same effect.
The WayHome Music and Arts Festival, taking place near Barrie, Ont., this weekend, says it changed its policy after hearing concerns from those who planned to attend.
Naloxone is an antidote to the powerful opioid fentanyl, a drug responsible for a growing number of overdose-related deaths. Fentanyl is sometimes found mixed with other drugs like cocaine.
WayHome's previous policy didn't allow attendees to bring their own naloxone-containing syringes at all. Instead, organizers said medical staff on site would be the only people with the antidote.
With the change in rules, attendees will now be able to trade their naloxone kits for Narcan, a nasal spray version of the antidote.
"In an effort to meet the concerns of those in possession of injectable naloxone kits, we will now be offering the spray in exchange for the injectable alternative at the gate," festival spokesman Todd Jenereaux said Tuesday.
