Wichita City Council members have voted to approve additional funding for a local organization to provide more overdose recovery kits in the community.
The group Safe Streets Wichita has been distributing naloxone kits to residents in areas where there is the greatest likelihood of opioid overdoses. The group received funding of $20,675 from the City of Wichita in January to create 4,000 kits. City Manager Robert Layton said the group has distributed about 2,654 kits and they have learned that 8 percent of them have been used to deal with an overdose. The group has applied for funding through the state of Kansas, but approval is not expected until September, and the kits are expected to run out.
Layton said studies have shown that community-based naloxone distribution is cost-effective and it prevents opioid overdoses, and it also helps connect people who have substance abuse issues to treatment and recovery programs. He said the city and Sedgwick County have been heavily affected by the opioid crisis, and in 2022 the county had the second highest vulnerability risk out of the state’s 105 counties. Layton said opioid-related hospital visits increased 230 percent from 2018 to 2021, and projected fentanyl-related deaths are expected to reach 300 this year for Sedgwick County.
The Council approved an additional $4,300 to meet the demand for overdose kits. Mayor Brandon Whipple said this is not just something for families that have had an issue with overdoses, but it’s an opportunity for people in the community to respond if they come across someone who is having an overdose. Whipple said a local delivery driver was asking about having a kit in case he encountered an emergency.
