San Mateo County announced a plan this week to place emergency overdose medication in publicly accessible boxes around the county.
The Naloxone Stand Box program is being rolled out by the San Mateo County Overdose Prevention Coalition. That’s a partnership of community organizations and the San Mateo County Behavioral Health & Recovery Services.
The program will place a small newspaper box filled with Naloxone in front of businesses and organizations. Naloxone comes in a nasal spray and can reverse the effects of an overdose from opioids. It is commonly known by one of its brand names, Narcan.
Applicants can apply for the program at no cost. They should be able to securely keep one of the boxes in a publicly accessible place and restock it as needed.
The first box was placed at the Allcove youth center on El Camino Real in San Mateo in December.
According to the county health department, there were 54 opioid-related overdose deaths in the county in 2024 and 121 opioid-related emergency department visits.
