PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

New vending machines in Allegheny County will do something other than dispense your favorite treats — they will be filled with the life-saving drug naloxone.

Throughout the county, seven vending machines will dispense the opioid overdose-reversing drug for free. Information for further resources is also available on the sides of the machines. 

Two of the vending machines are already active — one is located outside the Tree of Life Bible Church in Brookline and the other is outside South Side’s Jade Wellness Center, an alcohol and drug outpatient treatment center. The additional machines will be installed in coming weeks.

“Over the past year, a number of local health departments throughout the country have experimented with this concept of using vending machines,” says Otis Pitts, deputy director for the Allegheny County Health Department’s Bureau of food safety, housing, and policy.

“We’ll be prioritizing some of the hardest hit areas in terms of fatal overdoses here in the county.”

According to a CNN analysis, the naloxone vending machines can be found in at least 33 states and the District of Columbia. In Cincinnati, a study conducted around one vending machine was credited for reversing overdoses for at least 78 people within its first year of operation. 

A grant from the U.S. Centers for Disease and Prevention funded the machines with the goal of providing easily accessible Narcan (the brand name) to individuals who are not comfortable asking. Anyone can request Narcan from the Allegheny County Health Department itself, which also distributes it to multiple organizations. 

“This is just our latest effort to extend access to Narcan,” Pitts says. “This allows people to access the medication without having to call someone or even have to face someone to pick it up. They can really do it on their own terms and use it for loved ones or anyone that’s in their orbit that may experience an overdose.”

The funding for the machines’ Narcan comes from various sources including the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency and Allegheny County’s portion of national legal settlements with companies that made and distributed opioids.

In 2023, Allegheny County had 665 recorded deaths due to an overdose. 

“Anyone who is using street drugs is at risk for an overdose,” Pitts says, “and they and those around them should be equipped with the life-saving medication, naloxone.”

Jilian Musser’s reporting is supported by the Pittsburgh Media Partnership.