NEW YORK \u2014 Today, Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani, the New York City Health Department and the Staten Island Partnership for Community Wellness opened the City\u2019s first publicly supported health vending machines on Staten Island. Located in Port Richmond, the two machines will provide free health and harm reduction supplies 24 hours a day, seven days a week outside Community Health Action of Staten Island and A Chance in Life, expanding low-barrier access to lifesaving resources for New Yorkers.<\/p>\n
\u201cToo many New Yorkers have lost loved ones to the overdose crisis. We have a responsibility to meet this crisis with urgency and the tools that save lives. These public health vending machines will make naloxone, hygiene supplies and other essential resources available whenever people need them, free of charge and without barriers,\u201d said Mayor Mamdani. \u201cHealth care is a human right, and it is our job to make it easier for New Yorkers to get the care they deserve.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAs we confront the opioid epidemic, we have to make lifesaving resources as easy to access as possible,\u201d said Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Dr. Helen Arteaga. \u201cThese public health vending machines will connect more Staten Islanders with essential supplies while reducing barriers to care. Every overdose prevented is a life saved, and this investment reflects our commitment to protecting the health of every New Yorker.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPublic health vending machines offer New Yorkers barrier-free access to resources ranging from naloxone and condoms to socks and hygiene supplies where and when they need them,\u201d said NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Alister F. Martin. \u201cTools like this allow us to reach more people while opening the door for deeper community engagement and connection to services. This is public health in action.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anyone can use the machine by entering a New York City ZIP code before selecting free supplies. The machines are stocked with health and harm reduction tools, including naloxone, hygiene kits, fentanyl test strips and safer sex supplies, including condoms.<\/p>\n
The City\u2019s first four Health Department-supported public health vending machines opened in 2023<\/a> in Brooklyn and Queens to expand access to lifesaving supplies and connect more New Yorkers to harm reduction services. Since then, the machines have been used more than 73,000 times and have dispensed more than 6,600 naloxone kits. The most frequently selected items include hygiene kits and first aid supplies, sexual health kits, naloxone and other harm reduction resources.<\/p>\n The new Staten Island machines are funded through $12 million in opioid settlement dollars the City allocated in 2023 to expand prevention, harm reduction, treatment and recovery services across the borough. Through those investments, Staten Islanders have been connected to services<\/a> and support nearly 7,000 times through eight community-based providers.<\/p>\n Those investments are making a difference. Overdose deaths among Staten Island residents fell 49% between 2023 and 2024<\/a>. After recording the city\u2019s second-highest overdose death rate in 2023, Staten Island has the second-lowest rate in 2024. Provisional data<\/a> also shows overdose rates remained stable citywide through the first three quarters of 2025 following a significant decline in 2024.<\/p>\n \u201cPublic health\u202fvending\u202fmachines are a practical, compassionate way to meet people where they are and provide free access to essential supplies like naloxone, hygiene and wound care kits, menstrual products, and socks,\u201d said New York City Council Majority Whip Kamillah M. Hanks. \u201cWe fought for these dollars because Staten Island deserves real investments that protect public health, support harm reduction, and connect our neighbors to resources when they need them most.\u201d<\/p>\n The overdose crisis continues to take far too many lives, and we must continue investing in evidence-based strategies that meet people where they are,\u201d said Chair of the New York City Council\u2019s Committee on Health Lynn Schulman. \u201cPublic health vending machines expand access to lifesaving supplies, reduce stigma, and make it easier for New Yorkers to protect their health and the health of those around them. I applaud Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Health Commissioner Dr. Alister Martin, and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene for continuing to invest opioid settlement funds in innovative, community-based solutions that save lives. Every New Yorker deserves access to the resources they need to stay safe, healthy and connected to care.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m thrilled to see the installation of vending machines that will promote public health and improve access to lifesaving items like Narcan and safer sex kits. This is a proven method for keeping not just keeping people safer and healthier, but in some instances keeping people alive,\u201d said Chair of the New York City Council\u2019s Committee on Mental Health and Substance Use Tiffany Cab\u00e1n.<\/p>\n \u201cToday is a huge victory for our borough. Just two years ago, Staten Island had the second highest overdose death rate citywide, a disparity that reflects the persistent health infrastructure gaps residents face here\u201d said Adrienne Abbate, Executive Director, Partnerships for Community Wellness. \u201cAs we continue to tackle the overdose crisis, these new vending machines will help us begin to close those gaps, giving every community member free, 24\/7 access to lifesaving Narcan and other essential wellness supplies. Partnerships is proud to stand with our community partners in bringing these resources to North Shore and remains committed to fighting for Staten Islanders who have too often been shut out of the public health investments our communities deserve. Many thanks to Mayor Mamdani and the Department of Health for prioritizing the health and safety of every New Yorker.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAt The Village by A Chance In Life, we see every week that health is shaped long before someone reaches a clinic,\u201d said Gabriele Delmonaco, President and CEO of A Chance in Life. \u201cOn Staten Island\u2019s North Shore, more than 29,000 residents live below the poverty line, and many neighbors face long commutes, language barriers, stigma and uneven access to basic care. This public health vending machine is a practical and dignified way to bring life-saving tools closer to people, before a crisis becomes a tragedy. That is exactly the kind of community-centered partnership The Village by A Chance In Life was created to support.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe devastating impacts of overdose can be felt in every neighborhood across Staten Island. Along with our partners, Community Health Action has been at the forefront of the response, balancing tried-and-true harm reduction strategies with innovative modes of service delivery. This public health vending machine will improve access for our community when and where we need it most. The project\u2019s design prioritizes equity and evaluation, making it possible for us measure the impact and utility of a new life-saving strategy. Thank you to Partnerships for Community Wellness, Mayor Mamdani\u2019s office, and the Department of Health for this investment in saving lives,\u201d said Ericker Onaga, Executive Director, Community Health Action of Staten Island.<\/p>\n ###<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"NEW YORK \u2014 Today, Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani, the New York City Health Department and the Staten Island…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":274702,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[9,24,63,134,136,135],"class_list":["post-281327","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-staten-island","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-staten-island","tag-staten-island-headlines","tag-staten-island-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/281327","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=281327"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/281327\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/274702"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=281327"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=281327"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=281327"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}