Senator Kathy Marchione and Catholic Charities team-up to offer free Narcan training that has saved lives in the event of a heroin overdose

For Immediate Release: July 11, 2014

Contact: Josh Fitzpatrick (Senator Marchione), (518) 455-2381, fitzpatr@nysenate.gov, cell: (518) 542-2413, joshuakevfitz@yahoo.com    

Follow Senator Marchione on Twitter @KathyMarchione, and find her on Facebook

Senator Kathy Marchione and Catholic Charities team-up to offer free Narcan training that has saved lives in the event of a heroin overdose

Several free training sessions will be offered in Saratoga, Rensselaer and Columbia Counties, free Narcan kits will be provided to all attendees

On July 21, 22 and 24, Senator Kathy Marchione (R,C-Halfmoon) and Catholic Charities Care Coordination Services will offer free Narcan (naloxone) training that has proven to save lives in the event of a heroin overdose. The free training sessions are being offered in Saratoga County (July 21), Rensselaer County (July 22) and Columbia County (July 24). All attendees will receive a free Narcan kit and training in the proper administration of Narcan, which is the same safe, easy-to-use tool that first responders use when responding to a heroin overdose.

The sessions will allow individuals the opportunity to obtain training on learning the signs and symptoms of a heroin overdose and how to use Narcan to reverse an opiate overdose and save a life. The free Narcan training will be offered during afternoon and evening sessions. The dates, times and locations of the training sessions are as follows:

Saratoga County Narcan Training:

Date: Monday, July 21, 2014

Location: Halfmoon Town Hall

2 Halfmoon Town Plaza, Halfmoon, NY 12065

Times: 3:00 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.

Rensselaer County Narcan Training:

Date: Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Location: Center Brunswick Volunteer Fire Company

1045 Hoosick Road, Brunswick, NY 12180

Times: 3:00 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.

Columbia County Narcan Training:

Date: Thursday, July 24, 2014

Location: Hudson Elks Lodge

201 Harry Howard Avenue

Hudson, NY 12534

Times: 3:00 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.

Space at each of the upcoming free Narcan training sessions is very limited, individuals interested in attending are asked to RSVP by Friday, July 18, by calling Senator Marchione’s office at (518) 371-2751, or e-mailing marchione@nysenate.gov.

“Serving as a member of our bi-partisan Joint Senate Task Force on Heroin and Opioid Addiction, I learned about the very real, very deadly, threats of increased heroin and opioid abuse and addiction. The personal accounts about the real impact of drug abuse and addiction that were shared at the community forum I hosted at Hudson Valley Community College back in April were heart-breaking and a true call to action,” Senator Marchione said.

“I recently sponsored bi-partisan legislation, that is now State Law, which would improve the effectiveness of Narcan kits in helping save lives in the event of a heroin overdose. In order to ensure that more people have access to this important, life-saving training, I am proud to partner with Catholic Charities to host these free Narcan training sessions in Saratoga, Rensselaer and Columbia Counties. Everyone who attends one of our free training sessions will receive a free Narcan kit and learn how they can save a life in the event of an overdose. Since the first effort of this kind was started back in 1996, there have been over 10,000 reported overdose reversals resulting in lives being saved,” Senator Marchione stated.

 “As we attempt to address the underlying issues driving the recent rise in heroin and opioid abuse and work to expand available treatment, it is critical that we do whatever we can to keep our family members, friends and neighbors alive. It is our hope that this joint effort serves as an example of how community agencies and elected officials can work together to put effective tools like naloxone into the hands of people who can use it to help those around them,” said Keith Brown,
Executive Director Catholic Charities Care Coordination Services.

“With overdoses now the leading cause of accidental death in the United States, we have to do everything we can to ensure that this free, life-saving training is made available to as many people as possible. I hope everyone who can attend, will attend, one of these free Narcan training sessions in Saratoga, Rensselaer and Columbia County,” Senator Marchione concluded.

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