Wausau Finance Committee approves $80K grant for public health vending machines

WAUSAU, Wis. (WSAW) – Wausau is one step closer to adding public health vending machines in the city after the finance committee approved $80,000 in grant money to be used for the machines.

The vending machines will hold medication and tools to prevent overdoses in the area.

The Community Partners Campus and HealthFirst Network are where the future overdose prevention vending machines will be located.

“Our county has seen an increase in overdoses, year after year since 2018,” said Kerry Thieme, public health educator for the Marathon County Health Department.

This week, the Wausau Finance Committee approved $80,000 in opioid settlement funds for harm-reducing vending machines.

“These life-saving tools in the vending machines will be readily available for everyone to use and to help prevent a fatal overdose,” said Thieme.

Inside the machines are a variety of overdose prevention products including Narcan and fentanyl test strip kits. So far this year, there have been eight drug-related overdoses in Wausau resulting in three deaths.

”We’ve also seen an increase in ambulance runs or ambulance responses for suspected overdoses. So the activity is increasing,” said Thieme.

Unlike other resources, the outdoor overdose prevention vending machines will be available 24/7.

”Typically in our county, we see only nasal Narcan and fentanyl strips being available during business hours, which doesn’t always work for everyone. So it will expand access to these live-saving tools,” said Thieme.

Those life-saving resources won’t cost anything for users.

”All of the resources in the vending machines will be free,” said Thieme. “So whether that’s someone who uses substances, a parent, a child, or anyone in our community, it is going to help save lives.”

Now that the vending machines have been approved by the financial committee, their funding will have to be approved by the common council before the city can order those life-saving materials.

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