Threatened cuts to programs fighting opioid overdoses called ‘disastrous’ for communities

In his work as the Kenneth Young Center Recovery Support Services Manager, Daryl Pass drives 100 miles every week to restock the free Narcan vending machines from St. Charles to Des Plaines, Elk Grove to Elgin.

Dispensed through a nasal spray, Narcan, or naloxone, is the first go-to in saving lives from opioid overdoses since its distribution was made legal in 2010. Not only do first responders use it, but also people who know they might need help reviving themselves.

“As a survivor of two overdoses, I would not be here without it,” Pass said. “The last time I OD’d, Narcan was the vessel that saved my life. I am a walking testimony to the importance and effectiveness of what Narcan means to the community.”

As an advocate, Pass does Narcan training and distribution in Kane County and the northwest suburbs of Cook County.

Laura Fry, executive director of another nonprofit, the McHenry County-based Live4Lali, distributes free Narcan across northern Illinois – McHenry, Boone, Winnebago, Kane, DuPage, Lake and suburban Cook counties.

In 2024, it distributed 27,000 two-dose packets, reducing overdose deaths by 56%, Fry said.

But all that free Narcan may be coming to an end.

“It’s going to be catastrophic. I’m not being melodramatic.”

—  Laura Fry, executive director of McHenry County-based Live4Lali

Though the Trump administration named overdose prevention among its top drug policy priorities, in recent weeks, CNN and the New York Times have reported on a draft budget proposal to cut a $56 million annual grant program for the training and distribution of Narcan.

The annual grant program directly expands access to Narcan through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, or SAMHSA, which helps distribute kits and trains first responders and others on how to use them.

The proposal was in a document that outlined what the New York Times called a “drastic reorganization and shrinking” for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

‘It’s going to be catastrophic’

Will County Chief Executive Officer Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant said these “dangerous cuts would be disastrous for communities” throughout the county.

The region has been plagued by fatal heroin and opioid overdoses in the past.

“The federally funded naloxone initiatives are saving lives and helping turn the tide in the fight against substance abuse,” Bertino-Tarrant said. “This initiative has a proven track record of saving lives and should not fall victim to this administration’s reckless decisions.”

Fry agreed.

“It’s going to be catastrophic,” Fry said. “I’m not being melodramatic. Rural communities that have volunteer fire departments and small police departments do not have that in their budgets.”

With the cost of a two-dose kit at $44, Live4Lali’s cost would be nearly $1.2 million.

“We don’t have it,” Fry said. “We just don’t have it.”

Fry raised another point about cost to mention when speaking to legislators.

“The cost of Narcan vs the cost of EMS taking a person to the emergency room, or a worse case – the cost of an autopsy – is a lot more than $44," she said.

Another chance

Pass said Narcan not only saves lives, but it also gives people another chance to turn their lives around.

“Many people come back from an overdose and make the decision to turn their life around and become productive citizens in society. Narcan gives individuals another opportunity and another day. So many people have turned their lives around,” he said.

Some will continue to use opioids even after surviving an overdose, but that should not mean giving up on Narcan distribution, Pass said.

“This is a lifesaver no different than CPR or the defibrillator, or any lifesaving treatment,” he said.

$100 million loss to Illinois

Michael Isaacson, executive director of the Kane County Health Department, said the federal budget proposal would be an almost $100 million cut to Illinois for public health support.

“All of these things go together to create a perfect storm of damage to the community, potentially undoing decades of progress,” Isaacson said. “We are already struggling to meet the mental health and substance abuse needs of our community. Any future cuts are going to cause a lot of harm to our residents ... We have seen a decrease in fatal overdoses. This is not the time to ease up on our efforts around this important issue.”

Herb Stricklin, substance abuse recovery and prevention director for Ecker Center for Behavioral Health, echoed the concern that cutting Narcan funding “is potentially devastating.”

Ecker Center is based in Elgin but has an office in St. Charles, and serves the region.

“Since last November, we had heard rumblings that potential funding for Narcan may be cut, so we actively sought out other alternative means for this issue.”

—  Dan Jungles, Will County Sheriff’s deputy chief

In a partnership with the Kane County Health Department, Ecker developed the Opioid Overdose Prevention Program, where they Neither the trainings for school personnel and private businesses. They also attend summer festivals and pass out Narcan, Stricklin said.

“It’s such an amazing tool ... and a very safe substance,” Stricklin said of Narcan. “It can reverse an overdose in just a couple of minutes. It’s really very powerful.”

Narcan is safe for use on pregnant women, for children, even for drug sniffing dogs that sometimes inhale an opioid, Stricklin said.

“The thought of not having it available is a pretty scary thing,” Stricklin said.

Will County Sheriff’s Office prepared

The Will County Sheriff’s Office has a “rather large stockpile” of medication needed to combat the opioid crisis if proposed funding cuts move forward.

Neither the sheriff’s office nor the Will County Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition is worried about a shortage, according to Will County Sheriff’s Deputy Chief Dan Jungles.

He said the sheriff’s office has a “rather large stockpile of Narcan,” and there was enough to offer “out much of our overstock to other area departments.”

He said the departments have “declined our offer” because they, too, have enough “on hand and in overstock.”

“Since last November, we had heard rumblings that potential funding for Narcan may be cut, so we actively sought out other alternative means for this issue,” Jungles said.

The sheriff’s office has also initiated a pilot program agreement with a company called Indivior, a global pharmaceutical company that manufactures a drug called Opvee, Jungles said.

“[Opvee] is similar to Narcan, in that it is an opioid reversal drug, but has longer-lasting effects and studies have shown that it works more effectively on more potent forms of fentanyl,” Jungles said.

Jungles said studies have shown that fewer doses of Opvee will be needed to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, and it is administered the same way as Narcan. The only additional training needed will be explaining the difference between the two drugs, he said.

The Grundy County Health Department works with the Kankakee County Health Department to distribute Narcan kits, said Katie Harrison, Grundy County Health Department’s director of nursing.

Harrison said the kits also come with a test that lets users know if the drug they’re about to use can’t be reversed by Narcan.