Boston To Carry Overdose Reversal Kits At City Buildings

BOSTON — The city will install opioid overdose reversal kits in municipal buildings, thanks to a $30,000 donation from Aetna, according to the mayor. The donation will be used to install kits containing the overdose reversal medication naloxone (Narcan), clear instructions for its use, and other medical supplies to assist individuals who experience an overdose.

Before the kits are installed, the Mayor's Office of Recovery Services will hold on-site voluntary overdose prevention and naloxone administration trainings to city employees who are interested.

"Increasing access to naloxone has been a core strategy in the City's approach to countering the opioid epidemic," said Mayor Marty Walsh in a statement. "The unfortunate reality is that overdoses occur in all parts of our City, including in and around City buildings. By ensuring that City of Boston buildings have naloxone on-site and that employees are trained on how to use it in an emergency, we can continue to lead in the national fight against this epidemic."

This comes after a pilot program that had the kits in Boston Public Health Commission buildings and some Boston Public Library locations. The opioid overdose reversal kits will now be available to use in case of an emergency at Boston City Hall, 26 Court Street, and 43 Hawkins Street. All remaining city buildings will have kits by the end of the calendar year, according to the mayor's office.

Naloxone is a medication designed to rapidly reverse opioid overdoses, by binding to opioid receptors to reverse and block the effects of opioids. Naloxone cannot be abused, and does not have significant adverse side effects.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has encouraged workplaces, particularly those that serve the public, to keep naloxone on-site and establish a policy for responding to overdoses.

First responders started carrying the overdose reversal medication in 2014. Boston's Post-Overdose Response Team does follow-up visits after non-fatal overdoses. Last year, Boston EMS used naloxone on 1,928 patients, according to the mayor's office.

The city trains and distributes overdose reversal kits throughout the community and trainings are offered online, by request and twice-monthly drop-in trainings open to the public. Last year, the Recovery Services team trained more than 6,600 people, and received reports of more than 2,300 overdose reversals.

The Narcan kits are part of Boston's multi-pronged attempt to address the opioid crisis.

Boston is planning a recovery campus on Long Island that will expand recovery services for the region, fill gaps in the continuum of care and utilize the natural environment to provide a healing space, according to the mayor's office.

Boston also filed a complaint in Suffolk Superior Court against 13 opioid manufacturers, four distributors, and one local doctor that have contributed to the local opioid epidemic through misleading marketing and reckless dissemination of opioids that has led to the deaths of more than 830 Boston residents since 2014. As part of the litigation, the city is seeking to recover both past and future damages and injunctive relief associated with addressing the opioid epidemic in Boston.