Restocking vending machines with needles and Narcan to curb overdose deaths

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health purchased 14 vending machines last year, each costing about $15,000. Outdoor models are more expensive than machines installed indoors.

So far, the only device used in the state is the one used by Berkshire Harm Reduction. As with any harm reduction program, machines also face resistance.

Critics argue that giving people needles and pipes enables or facilitates drug use. In some communities, residents and business owners are concerned about increased needle waste and increased drug use in public spaces. Oklahoma state officials recently announced they are ending the vending machine program. cost was too high And the results were not as positive as they had hoped.

But many public health experts say vending machines do work and that concerns about them are largely unfounded. Washington State Police Chief John Batiste, who co-chairs the International Association of Chiefs of Police's Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Committee, questions the idea that providing safe supplies in vending machines promotes drug use. are.

“The people who come to these machines have already made a decision or are already using drugs,” he said. “So I don’t know how encouraging that is.”

Sarah Whaley, an opioid policy researcher at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, is another supporter. Encourage the community to consider It uses Opioid Settlement Funds to purchase harm-reduction vending machines, claiming that research shows the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.

“There's no increase in crime rates, there's no increase in loitering. I don't think there's any concern that people generally have,” she said.

Whaley points out that: study A study conducted in Southern Nevada suggested that having Narcan in vending machines contributed to a 15% reduction in overdose deaths in the first year of operation. In Cincinnati, found in research 24/7 access to supplies was associated with slowing the spread of HIV.

a report About the harm reduction vending machine prepared for the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the vending machine will expand access to Narcan, needles, pipes and first aid supplies and bring in people who have previously been reluctant to come in. It turned out to be a highly effective method. Harm Reduction Office.

“Vending machines could almost be the first step,” said Caroline Davidson, director of practice improvement and consulting at the National Human Services Council, which produced the CDC-funded report. Masu. “This is a great low-barrier way to serve people.”

What's in harm reduction vending machines varies by state. The university iswellnessModels with Narcan, emergency contraception, condoms, and other safe sex supplies.

Machines with drug use paraphernalia such as pipes and syringes are less common. Drug paraphernalia is prohibited in 11 states, and distribution by vending machines is not allowed in some other areas. Batiste didn't take a position on what would be provided, but said the community should consider the option of vending machines.

“We are in a sad situation as a country,” he said. “We are losing thousands of lives, so we need to consider creativity and thinking outside the box.”

North Adams Interim Police Chief Mark Bailey has expressed support for the machine, but he is also pragmatic about his opposition to naloxone, an opioid recovery drug also known by its trade name Narcan.

“I often hear people say, 'Why give them Narcan?' We should let them die,” Bailey said. “That's just ignorance, said by people who don't care or don't have a loved one who's suffering. If you have the ability to save a life, that's what matters.”

When Berkshire Harm Reduction installed the machines, some staff members worried about losing contact with customers. Program manager Sara DeJesus found a compromise. She turns off the machine when the office is open. Customers wishing to access the Medication Use Supplies must register with the Clinic on a regular basis.

“People have to come to us and reconnect with us and reactivate their code,” DeJesus said. ”

Berkshire Harm Reduction staff has individual restrictions on supplies such as pipes and needles, and customers must register to receive these items. But anyone can get Narcan, fentanyl test strips and condoms for free from the machines without registering.

DeJesus and her team installed this machine because their clients had been asking them to work long hours over the years. Brian and others said they were grateful. A few weeks ago, when Brian saw a man stick his arm out of the machine's opening to shake out a clean needle, he entered his code and handed the man a package of needles to tell him to stop. did.

Brian said, “I don't want to spoil it because it's been helpful to me so many times, just for myself.”