With a record number of 47 opioid-involved overdose deaths in April, the District is on track to have among the highest number of opioid overdose deaths per capita in the United State. In response, the city’s Department of Behavior Health announced today that the number of locations where the opioid overdose reversing medication Naloxone is available for free has more than doubled.
District residents can now get Naloxone nasal spray kits, also known as Narcan, without a prescription or ID at 35 locations spread across each ward. The locations includes a mix of pharmacies and community-based organizations.
To help promote the expanded availability of Naloxone, the District has also launched an innovative new locator service called “Text to Live.” Users simply text “LIVELONGDC” to 888-111 and receive a reply message with a direct link to a map showing all the locations in the city where free naloxone kits are available.
“Naloxone should be near at hand like any lifesaving medication. Family, friends, or others in the community can use naloxone to save someone who is overdosing. Keeping alive people who face drug addiction also keeps alive the hope and chance for treatment and recovery from this chronic illness,” Barbara J. Bazron, Director of the Department of Behavioral Health said in a press release.
