Vending machines that hold doses of Narcan are the latest weapon that are saving lives by preventing opioid overdoses and deaths. Instead of the usual snacks or soda, these vending machines are stocked with nasal spray that contains naloxone, often referred to as Narcan, a medication that can be used to reverse the effects of an overdose.
The latest vending machine has been placed outside the Community Connections Outreach & Recovery Center in Tupper Lake. The Director of Public Health in Franklin County, Katie Strack, says they chose Tupper Lake because there wasn’t really a good, reliable distribution network for Narcan.
Tupper is the second community in Franklin County to get one of these vending machines. The first went into the police station in Saranac Lake. Since it was installed in early October inside the lobby of the police station, the vending machine has distributed nearly a hundred packages of Narcan.