The Courier-Journal (Louisville)
LMDC: Jailed people saved the lives of 24 in the facility using Narcan
People incarcerated in Louisville’s jail have saved the lives of 24 others locked up at the facility using opioid overdose-reversing Narcan medication, jail and city officials said at a press conference on Tuesday.
“These 24 saved lives alone do not include the number of lives that have been saved by correctional and medical employees who now also carry Narcan and receive training and have access to Narcan at all work stations,” said Mariya Leyderman, Louisville Metro Department of Corrections’ chief psychologist.
Jail officials placed Narcan in all 51 of Louisville Metro Department of Corrections’ communal housing units in September 2022, giving incarcerated people easy access to the lifesaving medication. Incarcerated people were trained on how to use the nasal spray on others suffering potentially fatal opioid overdoses.
The installation of Narcan stations arrived amid a surge in jail deaths. Since late November 2021, a total of 15 people have died in the custody of Metro Corrections. Of those deaths, five has been from drug overdoses.
“Given the reality of where we are at today, and a jail population that has approximately two-thirds of its population with a diagnosable substance use, mental health or co-occurring disorder, LMDC must reimagine the role of corrections and serve as a point of intervention, a place of rehabilitation and a linkage point for access to longterm and sustainable recovery,” Leyderman said.
She added that while the jail had taken recent steps to prevent narcotics from coming into the jail — including eliminating all physical mail, developing a K-9 unit and increasing intake screening — it was a “reality” that correctional facilities face “a critical risk” from contraband getting in.
According to jail discipline documents obtained by The Courier Journal, since the start of 2022, several LMDC employees had been involved in alleged plots to smuggle contraband into the downtown facility.
The jail has also installed a free Narcan vending machine in its exit lobby to distribute the medication to people being released from jail.
The vending machine was purchased by the University of Kentucky’s HEALing Communities Study, which is looking at the impacts of intervention in dozens of communities across four states.
“Research has found that in the first two weeks after being released from a correctional institution, that people were 40 times more likely to die from an overdose than someone in the general population,” said Carrie Oser, a University of Kentucky professor and co-investigator on the study.
The vending machine distributes Narcan to people being released from jail after they answer a short series of questions about overdose awareness and their general demographic information on a tablet attached to the machine. The vending machine is stocked with more than 300 units of Narcan.
While the vending machine is not accessible to the public, Narcan can be obtained for free by Louisville residents by contacting the Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness.