An Innovative Way to Prevent Overdoses
Southwest Washington Accountable Community of Health (SWACH) is excited to announce five naloxone dispensing vending machines in our region. Partnering with Beacon Health Options, these machines will provide free naloxone in Clark, Skamania, and Klickitat counties. This innovative approach will help address the opioid epidemic in our region, with the end goal of saving lives from overdose.
Deaths from opioid overdose have increased significantly in recent years. This has been especially true during the COVID-19 pandemic, where isolation has led to a significant rise in opioid-related deaths across the country. In Washington State, an average of two people die from an overdose each day.
By making naloxone more readily available in our community, we can work to lower the number of overdose-related deaths. These vending machines are an innovative approach to remove barriers to accessing the life saving tool, both in cost and availability.
What is Naloxone?
Naloxone, also known as Narcan, is a safe and effective medication that can reverse an overdose from opioids. It quite literally is a life saver for individuals battling substance use disorder (SUD). While incredibly effective, unfortunately, naloxone availability varies across our region and is more difficulty to access in rural, low-income, and BIPOC communities.
Through Washington’s Standing Order to Dispense Naloxone, pharmacies can currently provide naloxone to people directly without a prescription. However, significant barriers to access persist, including the cost of the medication as well as ongoing social stigma associated with drug use. Together with our partners, this new project would directly address those barriers. By making naloxone free and easy to find, we can get the medication in the hands of more people who need it. These vending machines can also help undo some of the stigma around active addiction by normalizing the conversation.
How Does it Work?
In partnership with Klickitat Valley Health Hospital, Lifeline Connections, North Shore Medical Group, Recovery Café, and Xchange Recovery, SWACH is supporting the implementation of 5 self-service vending machines across Southwest Washington. The machines will dispense boxes of nasal naloxone to community members free of charge. Each vending machine will be in a location that offers treatment and/or recovery services; however, engaging with these services is not required to access the free naloxone. Anyone may access naloxone from these machines whether it is for themselves, a loved one, or simply to have on hand as part of a first-aid kit.
The aim of this project is simple: get life-saving overdose reversal medication into the hands of people who need it and lower the overall incidence of death due to opioid overdose in Southwest Washington.
Naloxone will be available in each machine starting in late October:
Clark County
XChange Church & Recovery Center
21810 Northeast 37th Avenue
Ridgefield, WA 98642
Lifeline Connections Recovery Resource Center
9317 NE Hwy 99 Suite M
Vancouver WA 98665
Recovery Café
3312 E. Fourth Plain Blvd. Suite #100
Vancouver, WA 98661
Skamania County
NorthShore Medical Group
875 SW Rock Creek Dr
Stevenson, WA 98648
Klickitat County
Klickitat Valley Health
317 Sanders Way
Goldendale, WA 98620
More information will be available once the machines are in place and naloxone is available. If you have questions regarding the project, contact us at info@southwestach.org.
