The Uintah County Sheriff’s Office has received attention in recent months for becoming a partner with Utah Naloxone and providing naloxone kits to inmates of the Uintah County Jail upon release. While the public reaction has been mixed, more and more communities, organizations, and individuals are becoming equipped and trained to use Naloxone in the event of an opioid overdose and the effort is making a difference. The Utah Attorney General’s Office announced this week that opioid overdose deaths are down in the state with more than 3,000 people having a second chance at life after being administered the overdose medication. “All of these life-saving doses were administered by non-medical members of our community who obtained rescue kits from Utah Naloxone or one of its Overdose Outreach Provider partners just for this purpose,” shares the announcement. Utah was one of only 7 states to show the death rate from opioid overdose going down. Still, they say there is work to be done as overdose is the leading cause of injury death in the state. It’s possible other correction facilities will follow in the footsteps of the Uintah County Jail in the future as the effort to distribute naloxone kits in the state continues.
