LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Images of four community leaders holding a small rectangular box have popped up on the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department's website recently.
Each photo includes the phrase, "Today's Heroes Carry the Spray," or "We need you to Carry the Spray." They feature Mayor Linda Gorton, activist Josh Nadzam, Lexington Department of Social Services Commissioner Chris Ford, and hip hop artist and activist Devine Carama.
The "spray" is Narcan, the brand name for the drug Naloxone. The nasal spray can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose and save a life, said John Moses, Coordinator of the Syringe Exchange Program at the health department.
"We have those recognizable faces in our campaign, out in the community trying to spread the word that everyone needs to carry the spray," Moses said.
The health department was recently awarded a $1 million grant from the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government to supply the community with Naloxone. That amounts to about 300 to 400 doses that can be handed out each month, Moses said.
Free Nalaxone kits are available at the health department, along with a ten minute training session on Nov. 19 at 5, 5:30, 6 and 6:30 p.m.
More information about how to receive a free Naloxone kit can be found on the health department's website https://lexingtonhealthdepartment.org/
