In opioid epidemic, some cities strain to afford OD antidote
BALTIMORE — On a Baltimore street corner, public health workers hand out a life-saving overdose antidote to residents painfully familiar with the ravages of America’s opioid epidemic. But the training wraps up quickly; all the naloxone inhalers are claimed within 20 minutes.
“We could’ve easily handed out hundreds of doses today. But we only had 24 kits. That goes fast,” said Kelleigh Eastman, a health department worker assisting the city’s bluntly dubbed “Don’t Die” anti-overdose campaign.
Cities like Baltimore are feeling the financial squeeze as they rely on naloxone to try and counteract rising overdose rates. Some hard-hit communities across the country are struggling to pay for dosages even at reduced prices.
With more overdoses driven by synthetic opioids like fentanyl and carfentanil — so potent it’s used as an elephant tranquilizer — naloxone remains pricy enough that Baltimore’s health department is rationing supplies, stretching a dwindling stockpile of inhalers. Last year, the city distributed more than 25,000 doses, up from about 19,000 in 2016.