Rep. David A. Bennett, who is also a psychiatric nurse, said increasing the availability of Narcan could help prevent overdose deaths in Rhode Island's general population. Narcan, the trade name for Naloxone, is a medication that can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose and restore the person's breathing within minutes. "It's a tool against the outbreak of opiate use," the Democrat said. "This bill will save lives." Gov. Gina Raimondo has said Rhode Island faces a public health crisis regarding opioid abuse. The state recorded 232 apparent accidental drug overdose deaths in 2013 and again in 2014. Twelve teenagers, ages 16 to 19, died of accidental drug overdoses from 2009 to 2012, the state Health Department says. And last year, Narcan was given 52 times to people under the age of 18 by emergency personnel. The data does not show whether any of the overdoses occurred on school property. But Bennett said the kits, at about $35 a piece for a total of about $7,000 to put them in the schools, would be worth the expense. He said the kits could help not only students, but also staff members, parents or school visitors. "You can't put a price on life," he said. "I hope we never use it." Dr. Melinda Campopiano of the federal Center for Substance Abuse Treatment said it can take hours for an overdose to do its damage so a person who goes into distress at a school could have taken the drugs long before coming onto a campus. She said she was not aware of any other states that require schools to have Narcan kits. Dr. Eric Voth, an addiction specialist in Kansas, said in a telephone interview Wednesday that he knows of no other states requiring schools to have Narcan kits and that Rhode Island might do better to spend its money on prevention programs. "It may be there are certain parts of the state that really have a terrible overdose problem and that may be a different story," said Voth, chairman of the Institute on Global Drug Policy. "But to require all schools to have them, I think, is probably pretty wasteful." The measure would require middle and high schools — those that have students from grades six through 12 — to have a kit onsite. Any trained school employee could administer Narcan in an emergency. The school nurse would conduct the training, which would be voluntary. The state Department of Education is supporting Bennett's bill, department spokesman Elliot Krieger said, adding that some schools may already have kits. The House Committee on Health, Education and Welfare discussed the bill Wednesday. The association that represents the state's school nurse teachers said it wants to ensure there's appropriate training for school nurses to administer Narcan, and an association of trial lawyers took issue with an immunity provision for school personnel who administer the medication. An addiction researcher and a public health professional spoke in favor of the bill. Rep. Joseph McNamara, the committee chairman, said he's supportive but suggested changing some of the language to address concerns. The committee voted to hold the bill for further study.