Naloxone program exceeds expectations, saves lives and deserves more funding | Opinion
Tuesday is National Fentanyl Awareness Day.
There’s nothing particularly remarkable about that. Every day is national something-or-other day and such designations are usually marked by local governments with honorary proclamations, if at all.
But this coming Tuesday, the Wichita City Council will have a concrete opportunity to do something substantial to help prevent overdose deaths in our community — and that’s worth more than a certificate.
Tuesday’s council agenda contains a proposal to provide $4,300 to Safe Streets Wichita to continue and expand the public distribution of naloxone — also known by the trade name Narcan — a drug that rapidly reverses the effects of opioid drug overdoses and saves lives.
Before dismissing the recipients of naloxone as just a bunch of druggies and addicts, do know that this can easily affect you.
You, or a loved one, might get an injury or illness, be treated with prescription pain medication, and come away with a dependency on it. According to Lisa Vayda, a Wichita pharmacist spearheading the local effort, it’s a “there but for the grace of God go I” situation.
Funding to expand naloxone distribution in Wichita doesn’t come from your taxes, but from the settlement of lawsuits against pharmaceutical manufacturers for their role in fueling the opioid crisis across America. The bulk of that money is required to be spent on drug treatment and prevention.
In January, Safe Streets got $20,675 from the council. At the time, it was projected that would be enough to hand out about 800 naloxone kits to residents of “hot spot” neighborhoods.
The program exceeded expectations. Safe Streets negotiated discounts and was able to obtain 4,000 kits at a cost of about $16,800.
That was a good thing, because demand for naloxone also turned out higher than expected.
As of this week, Safe Streets has distributed 3,215 naloxone kits. They know at least 267 have been used, but that’s probably a low figure because not everybody reports back when they’ve used a kit.
While addiction can happen to anyone, Safe Streets has concentrated its efforts in areas of the city where history has shown overdoses are most likely to happen.
About 800 kits have been handed out in the Broadway corridor between Lewis Street and the Lord’s Diner, an epicenter of homelessness in the city. Another 375 kits went to the area in and around Wichita State University, including on-campus distribution events and the recent Open Streets ICT street festival held adjacent to the university.
Safe Streets will be distributing naloxone at Open Streets ICT Nomar today. That event runs from noon to 4 p.m. on 21st street between Woodland Park and the Nomar plaza, at 21st and Broadway.
The remaining money from the original grant, plus the money the City Council will consider on Tuesday, would give Safe Streets enough to continue through the summer.
The effort is backed by hundreds of community volunteers, who come together to assemble the emergency overdose kits, which include a vial of naloxone and all the supplies needed to safely inject someone who’s in crisis. The kits also include information on where people can look for help fighting addiction.
The war on opioids is in a period of transition. The FDA has approved over-the-counter sales of Narcan, which will be hitting the market soon at drug and convenience stores.
Safe Streets has been handing out the injectable form of the medicine, but the change in policy will greatly expand access to the nasal-spray version, which is easier to use, Vayda said.
She said the group is hoping to work with the city to establish a program for police, paramedics and other first responders to leave behind Narcan spray when they respond to overdose calls, in case it happens again.
But first things first.
Safe Streets and its army of volunteers need money now to continue the good work they’re doing in the community. The city has the money for it.
So here’s looking forward to the Wichita City Council doing the right thing on Tuesday.
This story was originally published May 7, 2023 at 5:30 AM.
