substance abuse

Vending machines have become one of the latest tools in the fight against the opioid crisis.

Earlier this year, Safe Streets received funding from the city of Wichita to distribute naloxone kits to help prevent even more opioid-related deaths.

The kits will be distributed in areas considered to be “overdose hotspots,” which the city has identified as being along the Broadway corridor and West Kellogg.

In the first half of 2021, Kansas was one of the states showing the steepest increase in overdose deaths.

In the first month of 988, calls routed to Sedgwick County’s crisis center from the national suicide hotline increased about 30% percent.

Sedgwick County is waiting to hear how the state will spend its COVID recovery dollars before it expands the center.

Removing penalties for possession of the test strips and some amounts of marijuana is likely to free up resources at the city’s municipal court, according to those in favor.

The store serves a lower income area – as well as many members of the unhoused community.

Some initiatives introduced by the coalition included a social services hub, regional mental health hospital, and a homelessness task force.

Crisis care in the Wichita area is about to undergo a major overhaul.A new plan released Thursday lays out the steps to improving mental health and…