If you are experiencing a substance-use related or medical emergency, call 911. If you have specific medical questions, follow up with your provider.

If you are experiencing a substance-use related or medical emergency, call 911. If you have specific medical questions, follow up with your provider.

  • The Massachusetts Good Samaritan Law protects overdose victims, and those who call 9-1-1, from charge, prosecution and conviction for possession or use of controlled substances.

    It does not protect overdose victims and those who call 9-1-1 from:

    • Losing their public housing

    • Being arrested on prior warrants (if the police decide to run names of those on-scene)

    • Becoming involved with the Department of Children and Families (if children are present)

    Note: this is not legal advice

  • Certain behaviors and activities have the potential to cause harm, but there are ways to reduce the likelihood or impact of those harms.

    Let’s think about wearing sunscreen as an example. When we go outside, there is a likelihood that we get a sunburn, which increases our risk for developing skin cancer. To decrease our likelihood of experiencing the harm (a sunburn), we wear sunscreen!

    In the context of substance use, harm reduction is a public health approach that aims to reduce negative consequences of drug use (including overdose)!

    Harm reduction is a public health approach that aims to reduce the negative impacts or likelihood of opioid overdose.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Overdose, Opioids & Naloxone

  • Opioids work by attaching to opioid receptors. Receptors are special cells in the body. When an opioid meets the receptor, effects such as pain relief or feelings of pleasure occur.

  • An opioid overdose occurs when a person has too much of an opioid and their breathing becomes significantly slower or stops altogether, which can result in a lack of consciousness or unresponsiveness.

  • Naloxone, also called Narcan, is a legal, life-saving medication that can be used to treat an opioid overdose. it is most commonly available as a nasal spray, but injectable forms do exist. It works by replacing the opioids that have bound to opioid receptors in the brain.

  • Naloxone, or Narcan, is legal in all 50 states in the United States. There are no age restrictions on who can carry naloxone or Narcan.

  • No, giving someone naloxone will not harm them, even if they do not need it / are not experiencing an overdose. if you think someone is experiencing an opioid overdose and you have naloxone, you should administer it to the person.

  • There is no evidence that shows someone can have an allergy to naloxone. If you suspect that someone is experiencing an opioid overdose, you should always administer naloxone, if available.

    Read more here on allergies and naloxone from the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology.

  • Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid - this mean it was made entirely in a lab. It is extremely potent, or strong. For example, fentanyl is 100 times more potent than morphine.

    While it is often used for pain management, many times, it is illicitly manufactured and added to other substances, like pills and powders.

  • If you are in Massachusetts, you can use the Naloxone Program Distribution Locator. Many of these programs provide naloxone free of cost.

    As of March 2023, naloxone is available over-the-counter for purchase in all 50 states. You DO NOTneed a prescription to get naloxone, but you may have to ask a pharmacist. Please note The National Harm Reduction Coalition has a Naloxone finder map which can be accessed here.

    If you are not near a location where naloxone is available, you can visit NEXT Distro which is an online and mail-based harm reduction service that will provide you with naloxone via mail.

  • No!

    For more information, we’ve included these articles:

    Can fentanyl be absorbed through your skin?(UC Davis)

    Fentanyl Exposure in Public Places(Washington State Department of Health)

  • NO

Cannabis

  • No, vaping cannabis is not necessarily safer than smoking it. Cannabis vaping products typically deliver much higher levels of THC, or the chemical responsible for making someone feel “high”. Both vaping and smoking cannabis can cause harmful effects.

  • K2 or “Spice” refers to synthetic, or artificial cannabinoids that are sprayed onto dried plants. They can be 100 times more potent than THC derived from cannabis plants. health impacts include seizures, acute kidney injury, hallucinations and more. Check out this fact sheet from NIDA

  • When we think of cannabis and what causes someone to feel “high”, we are typically thinking of Delta-9-THC, which is a cannabinoid, or a chemical compound that binds to the cannabinoid receptors in the body causing the feeling of being “high”. Delta-8 is found in very small quantities in the cannabis plant. Because of this, Delta-8 products are created using unregulated, chemically altered cannabinoids. Delta-8 is not subject to the same federal regulations as Delta-9.

Alcohol

  • Even though alcohol is legal for those 21+ years old, about 178,000 people die each year in the US from alcohol use. (CDC)

Vaping, Nicotine, & E-Cigarettes

  • Vaping is not necessarily “safer” than smoking cigarettes. There are decades of data on the long-term and short-term effects of smoking cigarettes. We know that vaping can cause lung injury, worsen asthma, and can expose you to carcinogenic (cancer-causing) chemicals in the short-term. The long-term effects of vaping are still being determined. Vaping is not necessarily healthier than smoking cigarettes, but is different and not risk-free or “healthy.”

  • THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol) are both cannabinoids, or chemical compounds. THC is psychoactive, or is the chemical compound that causes the “high.” CBD is not psychoactive, or does not cause the feeling of being high. While it can be used to relieve pain, anxiety, and insomnia, its effects are still being researched!

  • Dabbing is when high-THC concentrates are heated with a torch until they vaporize, allowing large amounts of THC to be inhaled.​

    Concentrates, or the substance that is heated up, can be called "wax,""shatter," "crumble."​

    ​Concentrates can contain 4-6x more THC than normal cannabis.

Emerging Substances

  • Kratom refers to a product derived from the leaves of the kratom tree, which is indigenous to Southeast Asia. It has stimulant-like effects at low doses, and opioid-like effects at higher doses. Kratom is not currently legally regulated and is often sold in liquid or capsule form at gas stations and convenience stores. To learn more about kratom, visit NIDA’s page on kratom.

  • Xylazine, sometimes called “tranq”, is a non-opioid sedative. Today it is common for the drug supply to be contaminated with xylazine, which can cause slower heart rates, soft tissue sores and more. While xylazine is not an opioid, commonly used opioids such as heroin and fentanyl can be contaminated with xylazine. To learn more, visit this NIDA page for information and commonly asked questions.