WASHINGTON — Leaders in Washington D.C. have announced a new pilot project that will allow residents access to vending machines filled with lifesaving tools.
Whitman Walker Health Center is one of the six locations in the District where a vending machine stocked with lifesaving tools - such as Naloxone - has been installed for residents.
In October 2021, DC Health awarded grants to two community partners, Family and Medical Counseling Services and HIPS, to pilot the implementation of these vending machines across D.C. The vending machines also have hygiene and wellness products.
At least four of the six vending machines have already been installed across the District and the machines can be found here:
- Engine #7: 1101 Half St. SW, Washington, DC 20024
- Engine #33: 101 Atlantic St. SE, Washington, DC 20032
- Engine #27: 4260 Minnesota Ave. NE, Washington, DC 20019
- Whitman Walker Health Center: 2301 Martin Luther King Jr Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20020
These machines were strategically placed in areas with "higher than average rates of drug overdose and unhoused populations," according to DC Health.
Residents can safely access these vending machines at any given time of the day.