For the first time, a sheriff’s office in the Commonwealth is making overdose reversal medication via vending machine.
Middlesex County Sheriff Peter J. Koutoujian announced on Thursday that his office installed a naloxone vending machine at the Middlesex Jail & House of Corrections, free to all visitors and staff.
Naloxone is a medicine that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose, which can be delivered through an injectable or prepackaged nasal spray, according to the National Institute of Drug Abuse.
The machine was installed on December 9, and a sheriff’s office spokesperson said it’s already been used 24 times.
“We have always taken a comprehensive, public health-centered approach to supporting those working through recovery,” said Sheriff Koutoujian. “This new effort builds upon that robust foundation and will help make this life-saving medication more readily available.”
Officials say approximately 20-25% of incarcerated individuals in the Middlesex Jail & House of Correction are receiving a US Food and Drug Administration-approved medication for opioid use disorder.
Individuals using the vending machine can access the naloxone anonymously but will answer a brief survey regarding age, race, and gender to help inform future sheriff’s office programming. The vending machine also features a video and graphics with instructions on how to properly administer the medication.
“Through Medication Assisted Treatment and Directed Opioid Recovery (MATADOR) program and our Families in Treatment program, we have been at the forefront of implementing commonsense, data-driven initiatives to surround individuals and their families with options for treatment,” Sheriff Koutoujian said.
According to data released by the Department of Public Health, distribution of 196,500 naloxone kits through community-level programs resulted in at least 10,206 overdose reversals since the beginning of 2023.