BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — The Bakersfield City School District Board of Trustees is set to consider a policy change on Tuesday allowing middle and high school students to carry opioid overdose medication for emergency situations, according to the board agenda.

A board policy titled “Alcohol and Other Drugs” features several proposed changes, including allowing students to carry tools for opioid overdose.

A proposed addition to the policy would allow students in BCSD middle schools, junior highs, high schools or adult schools to carry fentanyl test strips or a “federally approved opioid antagonist” for emergency treatment of opioid overdose on campus or during school activities.

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Students 12 years or older could also carry and administer a naloxone nasal spray or other medication for federally approved over-the-counter, non-prescription uses, the proposal said.

Naloxone is an opioid antagonist that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose. It can restore normal breathing to someone whose breathing slows or stops due to an overdose.

This revision is to reflect California Assembly Bill 2998, which requires public schools to allow students over the age of 12 to carry and use opioid overdose medication like naloxone.

In 2022, the school district approved Narcan in its middle and high schools. It also approved training for school employees in coordination with Drug Free Kern, a group that works to reduce the impact of alcohol and drug misuse in Kern County.

While the Bakersfield City School District already has information about Narcan availability on its website, it doesn’t mention students being able to use such medication.

According to the latest annual Child Death Review Report, the average fentanyl-related death in Kern County children from 2020 to 2024 was 1.88 deaths per 100,000 population.

This is nearly 92% higher than the California average and 135% higher than the national average, although Kern County reportedly had no fentanyl-related deaths in 2024, according to the report.

Other proposed changes in the policy include telling parents at the start of every school year about the dangers of synthetic drug use and social media as a way of marketing and selling such drugs, as well as protecting students from suspension if they voluntarily confess alcohol or drug use to receive help.

The board is slated to get a first reading of the proposed changes during its meeting at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 18 at 1300 Baker St. No decisions are expected to be made at the meeting.

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