AUSTIN, Texas (KXAN) — Alanna Boulton saw the headlines take shape early Wednesday morning: a “bad batch” of drugs potentially causing five overdoses around Austin’s East 6th Street.
“The first thing I think of is, ‘Of course, not again,'” said Boulton, the director of operations for healthcare services with Central Health.
She described the circumstances of Wednesday’s situation as unfortunate but an opportunity to bring awareness to addiction and overdose prevention.
“This is something that individuals who use drugs, and the people who get to take care of them, see day after day after day,” said Boulton.
Prevention investments
On Tuesday, the Travis County commissioners court approved Central Health’s nearly $650 million budget for fiscal year 2027. Part of that funding includes $54 million in new investments for services like addiction treatment and mental health care.
Boulton mentioned the hospital district for Travis County also looks to boost the availability of naloxone in the community.
“People cannot engage with treatment and take care of their families and live fulfilling lives if they have overdosed and passed away,” she said.
Boulton mentioned over the course of 2026, Central Health has distributed more than 12,000 doses of the overdose-reversing medicine. For more accessibility, the hospital district plans to add four more vending machines for naloxone by the end of October — that’d bring the total number of units to 29 around Travis County.
“All of that is free and fully anonymous,” said Boulton.
Declining overdoses
According to Austin Public Health, Travis County in 2024 experienced 1,102 overdose emergency medical services calls and dispatches. The following year, that number dropped about 50% to 555 incidents.
Data from the Travis County medical examiner shows a decline in drug-related statistics as well. Although 2024 saw 380 accidental deaths by “drug toxicity,” 2025 experienced 301 deaths.
For Laura LeBlanc, the Sobering Center serves as possibly the first step toward recovery for those struggling with alcohol or drugs.
“We’re able to help people find a treatment bed, find longer term care resources,” described the nonprofit’s CEO.
The building, located at 1213 Sabine Street, Austin, provides education and safe use to patients who enter — whether that be following one night of partying too hard or a breaking point.
“They’re going to have one-on-one attention from staff,” mentioned LeBlanc. “We have peer recovery coaches here.”
Although a goal of zero overdoses may be too far from reality for Boulton and LeBlanc, the latter argues better protection for those in need starts when addiction is treated as a healthcare issue — not criminal.
“And when we do that, we will be able to access more people and more people will get connected to care,” said LeBlanc.
KXAN reached out to the Texas Restaurant Association to learn more about resources and training available for bar and nightclub staff to prevent overdoses. A spokesperson responded with the following statement.
“Emergency situations like this underscore the importance of our industry partnering with experts like the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission to ensure operators and employees have the training, resources, and support they need to respond.
Texas law requires bar and nightclub employees who are required to complete safe alcohol service training to also complete opioid overdose training every year. The free course, available through TABC, covers critical information including how to recognize the signs of a potential opioid overdose and what steps to take in an emergency.
As an industry that serves millions of Texans, our members take public health and safety extremely seriously. We encourage bar, nightclub and restaurant operators across Texas to take advantage of the resources available through TABC and make sure their teams are prepared to respond in an emergency like an opioid overdose.”
That course is publicly available can be found here.
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