Fewer Minnesotans are dying from drug overdose. According to new data from the Centers for Disease Control, deaths dropped nearly 5% from 2022 to 2023. A big reason for the drop is access to the lifesaving medication naloxone. But there is still much work to do as the state reports more than 1,200 Minnesotans lost their lives to drugs in 2023.
“Right now, overdose is the leading cause of death for anyone between the ages of 18 to 45,” said Alicia House, executive director of the Steve Rummler Hope Network, headquartered in St. Paul.
“Steve Rummler, our namesake, was a son, a fiancé, a drummer, a runner and also someone who suffered a severe spine injury and was put on prescription opioids,” House said. Rummler became dependent and then addicted to opioids, saying, at one point, “At first it was a lifeline. Now it is a noose around my neck.”
After years of battling his pain and substance use, with periods of treatment, Rummler turned to heroin. He overdosed and passed away on July 1, 2011.
The Steve Rummler Hope Network was founded within weeks of Rummler’s death and has been working ever since to provide resources for advocacy, education and overdose prevention in Minnesota.
One of the program’s most robust offerings is its naloxone training. Naloxone, sold under the brand name Narcan among others, is a drug that quickly reverses an overdose by blocking the effects of opioids.
“At the end of the day, it saves lives,” House explained. “You can administer it and watch someone go from not breathing to back to life. It’s a miracle.”
Equally incredible is the fact that a parent, spouse, friend or even stranger can administer naloxone. “And everybody should,” House added.
The Steve Rummler Hope Network is working hard to increase the number of people carrying naloxone. “Minnesota has the best saturation rate in the country,” House said.
She and the organization want all Minnesotans to know how to access and administer this life-saving drug. “You never know when you’re going to come across someone who needs it.”
The FDA approved naloxone for over-the-counter use in April of 2023. House says you may see naloxone on the shelf at drug stores like Walgreens or CVS for about $45, which she says is expensive for most and that’s why her organization offers another option.
“You can access naloxone through our network and its 220 access points across Minnesota,” House explained.
These access points are sites like public health buildings, libraries, restaurants or churches that have agreed to have naloxone kits and fentanyl testing strip kits on hand.
“You can find your closest access point and go there and receive these resources for free, no questions asked,” House added.
A map of these access points is located on the Steve Rummler Hope Network website here. There you’ll also find online or in-person training options for how to administer naloxone.
“Many people across the state have reached out to us for naloxone that they never thought they were going to use,” House said. “But they ended up utilizing it and saving a life.”
The Steve Rummler Hope Network wants people to feel confident and comfortable talking about drug abuse and the tools to combat it. “Bring up this conversation with your family and your loved ones,” House suggested. “The more we talk about it, the less stigmatizing it becomes.”