Community Bulletin
Medicare open enrollment runs Oct. 15 to Dec. 7, and local independent insurance agent Jeff Barnhart is offering appointments to help residents review their 2027 coverage options. He reviews plans one-on-one to provide the best options for clients. Read more →
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On Sept. 24, 2026, communities across the U.S. will be hosting free naloxone events for Save a Life Day, an annual day of action in its seventh year.
Save a Life Day aims to save lives via one of the simplest countermeasures to the overdose crisis: widespread naloxone access and education. Naloxone is an easy-to-use nasal spray that works to reverse opioid overdoses. Approved by the FDA more than 50 years ago, the formerly prescription-only medication became available over the counter in 2023.
Already, more than 750 free naloxone events cover the map. A full list of participating states and counties, plus a map of locations, can be found at savealife.day. For last year’s Save a Life Day alone, communities distributed around 133,000 naloxone doses across 1,044 events. Since 2021, the nonprofit SOAR WV has been coordinating this event, growing it from a two-county pilot in West Virginia to a fully national movement in 2025.
“There’s something magical about knowing that on the same day, people in communities everywhere, are connected by the simple belief that every life is worth saving,” said Sarah Stone, co-director for SOAR WV.
Save a Life Day works to promote year-round low-barrier naloxone access and ongoing anti-stigma work. Over the years, SOAR WV has helped communities install more than a hundred easy-access naloxone vending boxes and more than 5,200 emergency naloxone wall boxes.
“It takes hundreds of event organizers and thousands of volunteers to make this happen,” said Caroline Wilson, national Save a Life Day coordinator. “It’s a special day of naloxone distribution because we get to reach a broader audience, connect with new people, and hear their stories.”
This year’s theme is Elevate Harm Reduction, intended to highlight and promote evidence-based strategies, such as syringe programs and drug testing, that save lives, mitigate disease transmission and prevent deadly infections. Earlier this year, federal grants prohibited the phrase “harm reduction” and even “never use alone” messaging, as well as funding for various life-saving supplies.
“With Save a Life Day’s 2026 theme of promoting harm reduction, we’re trying to return some public health sanity to the conversation,” said Joe Solomon, co-director of SOAR WV.
