You are riding home on the Green Line one evening and suddenly the person sitting across from you, who looked like they were sleeping, slides down to the floor of the car and seems unresponsive. What would you do?
Thanks to a partnership between the CTA and Cook County Health, you may have free naloxone in your bag from the vending machine at the Harlem Green Line station (Oak Park side, near the South Boulevard entrance). Naloxone (the generic name for Narcan®) is a nasal spray that can reverse an opioid overdose. Overdose kills by stopping a person’s breathing, and naloxone works by disrupting the opioid/brain connection to get the person breathing again.
Naloxone is extremely easy to use (instructions are on every box) and is safe for children, pregnant women, and the elderly. If someone is not overdosing, naloxone will not hurt them. Because you should always call 911 to report someone who appears nonresponsive, the person will get help regardless.
Opioids are in our homes as well as in public spaces. Last year in Cook County, the youngest person to overdose was 2 years old and the eldest was 85. A child may get hold of a pill prescribed for a family member. A senior may over-take their pain medication. A college student may get a substance off the internet that they think will help them focus, but may actually contain fentanyl, which can be deadly. Overdose can happen anywhere, to anyone.
The Oak Park machine is one of five across the CTA system. More than 7,300 boxes of free naloxone have been distributed systemwide, and 1,600 of those are from the Harlem Green Line station. Because of widespread harm reduction efforts like free naloxone, opioid overdoses are declining nationally and in Illinois.
But even one fatal overdose is too many. My son, David, died of an opioid overdose on the CTA Blue Line in late 2021. As the fifth anniversary of his death approaches, I’m reflecting on the remarkable progress an amazing group of advocates and bureaucrats have made to fight overdose on public transit and in communities disproportionately impacted by opioid use. I’m proud to be part of a team, led by the West Side Heroin/Opioid Task Force, that persevered to make free, easily accessible naloxone a reality on public transit.
Please check out the Green Line vending machine. To get your free box of naloxone, just follow the prompts on the keypad. Thank you for learning how to save a life.
Sheila Black Haennicke has lived in Oak Park for 30 years. Her son, David, graduated from OPRFHS in 2010.
