In honor of Overdose Awareness Day, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) is launching a program with emergency medical services (EMS) providers to further prevent opioid overdose deaths.
EMS providers will give overdose survivors extra naloxone kits — the medication that reverses opioid overdoses.
In 2018, overdoses killed 2,599 Michiganders. Nearly 80 percent of those deaths involved opioids, continuing an epidemic that has devastated countless families.
Overdose Awareness Day memorializes the individuals whose lives have been lost to an overdose, and marks an occasion to offer support to the family, friends and communities impacted by this epidemic.
The observance provides a call to action for continued bold steps to address the opioid crisis.
“Far too many Michiganders die from opioid overdoses and tragically the opioid crisis has only gotten worse during the pandemic,” said Robert Gordon, MDHHS director. “That’s why MDHHS is proud to work with the state’s EMS providers to give Michigan families another resource to prevent overdose deaths. It is more urgent than ever that we take decisive action to prevent overdose deaths and dismantle the stigma around addiction.”
The EMS Naloxone Leave Behind Program is aimed at getting naloxone into the hands of people who need it most, Gordon said.
The program will allow first responders to leave behind extra naloxone kits with the patient, family and friends, or bystanders at the scene of a non-fatal overdose.
Survivors are at high risk for repeated overdoses, so providing naloxone to these individuals and their loved ones is particularly important.
Each kit will include naloxone and instructions on overdose response.
“Michigan’s EMS providers are standing by 24/7 to treat medical emergencies including helping prevent overdose deaths,” said Jack Fisher, Michigan Association of Ambulance Services (MAAS) president and executive director of Medic 1 Ambulance in Berrien County.
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