New Substance Use Harm Reduction Vending Machine Available in Detroit

New Substance Use Harm Reduction Vending Machine Available in Detroit

Detroit, MI (March 28, 2022) – Team Wellness Center is installing a harm reduction vending machine in the agency’s Team East clinic at 6309 Mack Ave. Detroit, MI 48207. The vending machine will give people 24-hour access to the life-saving overdose reversal medication naloxone and other harm reduction and self-care items for free.

“Every life we lose to addiction is one too many,” said Michael Hunter, President of Team Wellness Center. “This vending machine gives the community another tool to help prevent drug overdoses and other harmful effects of substance use.”

In addition to naloxone, the harm reduction vending machine will be filled with syringes, alcohol swabs, soap, toothpaste, band-aids, moist toilets, Neosporin, Advil, Tylenol, condoms, hand sanitizer, deodorant, first aid kits, and information on treatment options.

Anyone from the community is welcome to walk in and use the vending machine anonymously, at no cost. Counselors and therapists are also available for those seeking additional help with addiction.

“We want to give people immediate access to items that can save their lives,” added Hunter. “Our ultimate hope is that people who come to use the harm reduction vending machine will get to a point where they are willing to receive treatment and begin working towards recovery.”

Team Wellness Center is installing the vending machine in response to a spike in overdose deaths in Michigan. According to preliminary data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 3,000 people died in Michigan from a drug overdose between April 2020 and April 2021.

If the vending machine is a success, the agency will install other machines in their clinics across Wayne County. The harm reduction vending machine will be available to the community starting April 1, 2022.