AUDIO – THE RIGHT DIRECTION –
Nov. 30, 2025 – Methadone helps patients like Trina resist cravings for fentanyl. It’s been around for decades, but most patients have to find their way to a designated methadone clinic every morning to get their dose. What’s new for Worcester is bringing methadone right to Trina, or very close. Trina says with methadone, she feels like her life is worth something again. NPR agreed not to use Trina’s full name because she still occasionally buys illegal drugs. A hospital in Worcester runs another van that offers a different addiction-treatment drug and stocks ambulances with that medication. But even with easier access to treatment, people still overdose. So Worcester made a second change last year. It blanketed overdose hotspots with a drug that can bring people back to life.
BEBINGER: In fact, this sample contains the animal tranquilizer xylazine. Sixty-four percent of samples tested last year in Worcester included traces of xylazine. Here’s why that matters. Xylazine can put someone in a deep slumber for eight hours, much longer than fentanyl alone. So people taking xylazine use drugs less often. Traci Green oversees the street drug-checking program in Massachusetts.
