If Dane County builds a safer drug use site, it could look like this
DAVID WAHLBERG
Updated
Equipped and staffed to reverse overdoses, New York City's new, privately run "overdose prevention centers" are a bold and contested response to a storm tide of opioid overdose deaths nationwide. Supporters say they are humane, realistic responses to the deadliest drug crisis in U.S. history.
The overdose prevention center at OnPoint NYC in East Harlem, which opened in 2021, includes eight booths where people can use drugs under supervision, said Brittney Vargas-Estrella, director of operations. “We’re always ready to follow our participants’ needs," she said, "whether it be detox and treatment or whether it may be accessing mental health counseling or getting on mental health medication.”
Staff at OnPoint NYC, which runs two overdose prevention centers in New York City, use an injected form of naloxone to reverse drug overdoses if needed, not the more common Narcan nasal spray, which can induce withdrawal, Vargas-Estrella said.
OnPoint NYC's facility in East Harlem is located in a building that formerly housed the National Jazz Museum in Harlem, which is now a few blocks away.
Staff at OnPoint NYC, which runs two overdose prevention centers in New York City, use an injected form of naloxone to reverse drug overdoses if needed, not the more common Narcan nasal spray, which can induce withdrawal, Vargas-Estrella said.
The overdose prevention center at OnPoint NYC in East Harlem, which opened in 2021, includes eight booths where people can use drugs under supervision, said Brittney Vargas-Estrella, director of operations. “We’re always ready to follow our participants’ needs," she said, "whether it be detox and treatment or whether it may be accessing mental health counseling or getting on mental health medication.”
OnPoint NYC's facility in East Harlem is located in a building that formerly housed the National Jazz Museum in Harlem, which is now a few blocks away.
