Free Narcan, drug test strips distributed throughout W.Va

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Volunteers and public health workers set up shop in parks, churches, post offices and community centers Thursday for the largest event for overdose reversal drug training and distribution in West Virginia’s history. “People were reaching out to us and saying, ‘How can we do this in our community?’” said Stacy Kay, co-director of Charleston-based Solutions Oriented Addiction Response, an organization involved with planning the event. “People are really recognizing a need to have Narcan in their first aid kids.” West Virginia has by far the nation’s highest overdose death rate, and four out of every five fatal overdoses in West Virginia in 2021 involved an opioid. “It’s really just being that connection to care when they’re ready — just to promote the message that we believe that everybody deserves a second chance and every life is worth saving.” The theme for this year’s event was “meeting people where they are.” In addition to more than 180 locations throughout the state, mobile outreach teams were also deployed to hard-hit areas to provide Narcan and other resources to people who might not know about Save a Life Day or wouldn’t feel comfortable coming to one of the sites.