​

Harrisburg, PA – As part of Stop Overdoses in PA: Get Help Now Week, a statewide initiative to get the overdose reversal medication naloxone to Pennsylvanians and get help for residents suffering from the disease of opioid-use disorder, the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency provided an update today on the agency's current efforts to date to distribute naloxone throughout the Commonwealth, and the technical assistance PCCD provides to counties through the University of Pittsburgh, School of Pharmacy, Program Evaluation and Research Unit (PERU).

Since November 2017 through September 2018, 41,220 doses of naloxone have been distributed to all 67 counties in the Commonwealth through a $5 million appropriation included in the 2017-2018 state budget.  The intranasal naloxone kits, or NARCAN®(naloxone HCI) Nasal Spray, are needle-free and are designed for ease of use for nonmedical personnel. The kits are supplied by Adapt Pharma, Inc., headquartered in Radnor.

Using the naloxone distributed through PCCD, 4,501 opioid overdoses have been reversed during that same time period.  Almost half of these reversals have been administered by law enforcement.  

Yesterday, over 4500 kits of naloxone were additionally distributed as part of Stop Overdoses in PA: Get Help Now Week naloxone distribution day. 

"We cannot get someone into treatment if they are dead," Governor Wolf said. "Naloxone saves lives and we should all carry it because you never know when you will get the chance to help someone." 

For counties seeking specific assistance in addressing the opioid epidemic, PCCD continues to support the University of Pittsburgh, School of Pharmacy, Program Evaluation Research Unit (PERU), for the development of an Opioid Overdose Reduction Technical Assistance Center (TAC).  The TAC works with counties in developing strategies to reduce opioid addiction and overdoses in their communities.

Throughout the past year, the TAC at PERU has worked with 48 counties to provide technical assistance in establishing and/or supporting overdose prevention coalitions within those counties.  This was a 37% increase in the number of counties PERU provided assistance to in FY16-17. 

The TAC continues to actively seek to onboard additional counties throughout the Commonwealth and will continue to provide current counties with services and guidance that help counties to move towards their ideal visions of eliminating stigma and overdose death.  More information about PERU can be found on their website, www.overdosefreepa.org. 

For more information on Pennsylvania's response to the opioid crisis visit www.pa.gov/opioids.

MEDIA CONTACT: Kirsten Kenyon, (717) 265-8505, PCCD

# # #