Unused newspaper boxes repurposed to distribute free Narcan at 25 sites in northern Michigan

What’s happening: An innovative repurposing of unused newspaper sales boxes is making its way to northern Michigan, where Traverse City’s Munson Healthcare has partnered with a local community organization to stock and distribute 25 Narcan Distribution Boxes at various points throughout the region. The distribution boxes provide free and anonymous life-saving medicine made available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

What it is: The repurposed newspaper boxes are supplied with Narcan (Naloxone HCI), a nasal spray that acts as an antidote for Fentanyl, heroin, and other opioid overdoses. Administering Narcan to someone experiencing an overdose can be a live-saving act, and communities nationwide – urban, rural, and all points in between – are at risk.

Why it’s important: “Carrying Naloxone is an extra layer of protection in the event of an emergency, much like you would an Epi Pen for an allergy,” says Dr. Joe Santangelo, Munson Healthcare Chief Medical, Quality, and Safety Officer. “In nearly 40 percent of overdose deaths, someone else was present at the time so having Naloxone available allows bystanders to easily administer medication through a nasal spray that could save a life.”

Who’s behind it: Munson Healthcare has partnered with the Harm Reduction Michigan community organization on the program, leveraging a grant from the Health Resource and Service Administration to support the project.

“Carrying Naloxone is an extra layer of protection in the event of an emergency, much like you would an Epi Pen for an allergy,” says Dr. Joe Santangelo, Munson Healthcare Chief Medical, Quality, and Safety Officer. (Photo: Munson Healthcare)Positive trends at home: According to a November 2024 report from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the state’s proactive approach to combating opioid deaths resulted in a 5.7 percent decline in fatal overdoses from 2022 to 2023. That decline is approximately five times faster than the national rate of overdose deaths over the same period. Michigan credits that decline to its own innovations in care – like the Naloxone Direct Portal, which provides community groups with free access to the medicine – and local developments like Munson’s distribution boxes surely contribute to those lives saved.

Where to find them: The distribution boxes can be found at publicly accessible sites throughout the Munson Healthcare network, northern Michigan’s largest. That includes seven hospitals, two urgent care centers, and 16 ambulatory clinics in Boyne City, Cadillac, Charlevoix, Empire, Frankfort, Gaylord, Grayling, Houghton Lake, Lewiston, Manistee, Mio, and Traverse City.

Visit Munson Healthcare online for a complete list of locations offering access to the new Narcan Distribution Boxes found throughout northern Michigan.

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