GO BEARS –
Oct. 17, 2025 – Even libraries have become part of the city’s arsenal in the fight against drug overdose deaths. Chicagoans can get free drug test strips at the city’s public libraries – as well as naloxone nasal spray, which can reverse an opioid-induced overdose.
Among US counties containing the nation’s 10 largest cities, Cook county, Illinois – where Chicago is located – has seen the largest reduction in overdose deaths since the national peak of the crisis in 2023, by 37%, according to an exclusive Guardian analysis.
Chicago has one of the most robust drug supply surveillance and overdose prevention response systems in the nation. Jenny Hua, medical director for the Chicago department of public health, hesitated to take full credit for the progress, explaining that many factors influencing overdose deaths are beyond any one health department’s control. It’s also easier to have a coordinated response in a big city, where people and resources are concentrated. Changes to the drug supply are also affecting regions differently.
