Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
With opioid-related overdoses continuing to increase in Massachusetts, Attorney General Maura Healey is reminding municipal officials about a state program enabling them to purchase the overdose-reversing drug naloxone at a “deeply discounted” rate.
The life-saving medication (also known as Narcan) has been used by first responders to reverse thousands of overdoses. During the last fiscal year, 82 municipalities purchased 11,050 doses of naloxone at discounted prices through the Municipal Naloxone Bulk Purchasing Program, saving approximately $187,000, according to Healey.
“In order to reduce the number of fatal overdoses, it is critical that law enforcement, community health organizations, health care facilities, families, and first responders, in particular, have access to affordable naloxone,” Healey states. “While many agencies have purchased naloxone through this program, we must continue to expand access … as widely as possible.”
A report released last month by the Department of Public Health estimates that there were nearly 2,000 overdose deaths in 2016, a 13 percent increase over the previous year, with many of the deaths involving fentanyl use.
Source: Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Data Brief, February 2017