Sacramento City Unified to Make Narcan Available to All Schools Starting Week of October 10

e-Connections Post

We are reaching out to our SCUSD community with an important public health message about the dangers of opioid use impacting our community.  Sacramento County has experienced 174 deaths due to opioid overdose in 2021, impacting children as young as 15 and older. The California Department of Public Health recently released an alert about a new trend called “Rainbow Fentanyl,” (an extremely potent and dangerous synthetic opioid), which is found in pills, powders and blocks in a variety of bright colors, shapes and sizes resembling sidewalk chalk or candy. Fentanyl continues to be a major contributor to drug overdoses in California, including among youth. 

In response, SCUSD is adding another life-saving rescue medication to all our school sites by providing Narcan nasal spray for use during a suspected opioid overdose.  All our school sites have a number of emergency and rescue measures at their disposal, including AEDs to restart heart rhythms, Epi-Pen auto-injectors in the case of a severe allergic reaction, and now Narcan nasal spray.

SCUSD Health Services has obtained free Narcan to distribute to our school sites through the California Department of Health Care Services Naloxone Distribution Project. We will be distributing Narcan to all school sites throughout the week of October 10th.

We urge all our SCUSD community members to learn about the signs of opioid overdose and speak to our children, family members, friends and colleagues about the dangers of opioid use. 

See the “What Every Parent and Caregiver Needs to Know About FAKE PILLS” flyer for more information and important tips for talking about fentanyl awareness and use:

  • Encourage open and honest communication
  • Explain what fentanyl is and why it is so dangerous
  • Stress not to take any pills that were not prescribed to you from a doctor
  • No pill purchased on social media is safe
  • Make sure they know fentanyl has been found in most illegal drugs
  • Create an “exit plan” to help your child know what to do if they’re pressured to take a pill or use drugs

To learn more please visit the links below -

Parents/guardians and students may access Narcan Kits at the following locations:

We appreciate your partnership and support in doing all we can to ensure the health and safety of our SCUSD community.

What Every Parent and Caregiver Needs to Know About FAKE PILLS