DENVER (KDVR) — For nearly six months, Narcan and fentanyl test strips have been readily available for Denver residents, free of charge, but demand for the program has been hit or miss.
“From September through mid-December, we were getting maybe 10 requests a month,” Marion Roarke, DDPHE’s substance use resource coordinator, said.
That all changed on Sunday when five people died in Commerce City after reportedly overdosing on cocaine, laced with illicit fentanyl. The city has now received roughly 2,400 requests this week alone.
“Most of those [were] from over the weekend, so clearly, there’s a huge need for this,” Roarke said.
DDPHE is now working to try and distribute those orders as quickly as possible, with the ultimate goal of getting kits out within a week of receiving the request.
Narcan, which is a simple nasal spray, can reverse an opioid overdose in a matter of seconds. For Englewood resident Amanda Alexander, it’s a tool that saved her life following a fentanyl overdose in 2009.
“I wouldn’t be here if someone hadn’t been carrying something as simple as Narcan,” she said.
At the time, Alexander was a regular heroin user and living in Boston where illicit fentanyl was known to be circulating.
“Initially when I used, I knew something was different,” she said. “It just felt really powerful.”
Alexander was revived by a first responder who happened to find her and just happened to be carrying Narcan.
She’s now in recovery and works as an addictions counselor. She carries Narcan with her everywhere she goes and estimates she’s administered it about a dozen times in the past decade.
Denver residents can request Narcan and fentanyl test strips for free by clicking here. Non-Denver residents can obtain supplies at various pharmacies, which can be found by clicking here.
“It’s as easy as carrying something in your bag, or pocket or backpack or whatever you carry. It’s just that easy,” she said.
She hopes the Commerce City tragedy serves as a wake-up call that fentanyl is infiltrating different drug supplies, even those used recreationally.
“I think it definitely is a huge wake-up call for many communities,” she said. “I hope it is.”