Delco Heroin Task Force joins statewide effort Stop Overdoses in PA: Get Help Now Week
District Attorney Katayoun M. Copeland and members of the Delaware County Heroin Task Force are joining in the statewide effort to save lives by providing free Narcan and resources for treatment and recovery. Stop Overdoses in PA: Get Help Now Week, December 10-14, is a statewide initiative announced by Governor Tom Wolf and the Pennsylvania Department of Health to give the overdose-reversal medication naloxone to Pennsylvanians for free and get help for residents suffering from the disease of opioid-use disorder.
Recovery resources will be available and doses of Narcan will be distributed on Thursday, December 13, 2018 from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Delaware County State Health Center, located at 151 W. Fifth Street, Suite 1 in Chester. The initiative is aimed at those who are not able to get Narcan from a pharmacy, for individuals who have a substance use disorder, and for family and friends of someone in crisis.
Last month, District Attorney Katayoun Copeland announced that doses of Narcan have been installed in 60 automatic external defibrillator cabinets in the Delaware County Courthouse and Government Center in Media along with other county buildings. Each cabinet has 4 mg doses of Narcan with step-by-step instructions on how to administer it nasally. Currently, there are plans to also install the life-saving drug at AEDs in Delaware County libraries along with universities and colleges. In addition, Narcan is also available at pharmacies every day without a prescription through a standing order prescription signed by Dr. Rachel Levine. Narcan is covered by most insurances at little to no copay.
Help is also available for those in crisis 24/7, statewide and here in Delaware County. If you or a loved one is suffering from drug addiction, you can call the Certified Recovery Specialist (CRS) hotline 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, at 610-497-7278. Whether you have insurance, are uninsured, or underinsured individuals can also call the PA Get Help Now Hotline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357) to enter treatment or talk to someone about available resources in their community.
In Delaware County, Certified Recovery Specialists (CRS) work with emergency rooms, police, crisis centers, physicians and families to reach people who recently survived an overdose. Through this program, recovery specialists connect residents with treatment referrals, support services and information on insurance and treatment options. The program is free for Delaware County residents. Since the program started in April 2016, the recovery specialists have engaged and outreached to more than 1,600 individuals.
