Baltimore will soon launch a coordinated naloxone outreach program that’s expected to vastly expand access to the life-saving overdose reversal medication as officials look to curb in-home overdose deaths.
Standing before a sea of nonprofits, city agencies, and residents directly impacted by the overdose crisis, Mayor Brandon Scott announced the “Naloxone Neighbors” initiative at the city’s annual International Overdose Awareness Day event on August 28 at ABC Park in West Baltimore. Nearly two-thirds of all overdoses in the city occur in people’s homes, and through the program, the Mayor’s Office of Overdose Response will work directly with neighborhood and community associations to distribute naloxone and train residents how to use it. It is slated to begin by early October.
“No one has to die in their home simply because their family, friends or those who they live with do not have the materials or training to save them,” Scott said. “Every single overdose is preventable, and we have to keep [drug users] alive in order for them to find success in life.”…