Sean O'Donnell

Secretary Hillary Clinton visits the Las Vegas Community Recovery Center

In a visit to the Foundation for Recovery, Secretary Clinton meets with overdose survivors, and announces 720,000 doses of naloxone distributed through a CGI partnership since 2019

Access to naloxone can mean the difference between life and death for someone experiencing an overdose. The medication is a vital tool used in the Foundation for Recovery’s efforts to reduce fatal opioid overdose deaths in Las Vegas and across Nevada.

Today, Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton visited the Foundation for Recovery’s community recovery center in Las Vegas, Nev. The Foundation for Recovery has partnered with the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) to distribute naloxone throughout the local community. Secretary Clinton today announced that through a partnership with Direct Relief and community organizations like the Foundation for Recovery, CGI has helped distribute over 720,000 doses of naloxone across 21 states since 2019.

“There is reason for hope – a recent study found that 3 in 4 people who struggle with addiction eventually recover. But they can’t recover if we ignore them and deny resources to them, which is why we’ve got work to do to make lifesaving naloxone to those who need it,” said Secretary Clinton. “At CGI, we bring together people who have different experiences, different expertise, different resources, and put them all together to take action and make a difference that one of us alone could not.”

SECRETARY CLINTON GIVES REMARKS TO VOLUNTEERS AND MEMBERS OF FOUNDATION FOR RECOVERY’S COMMUNITY RECOVERY CENTER (PHOTO: MEGAN MAHER)

The Clinton Foundation has worked to fight the overdose crisis for over a decade, with President Clinton and Chelsea Clinton leading efforts to forge community partnerships to distribute naloxone. As part of today’s visit, the Mayor and Las Vegas City Council issued a proclamation calling May 24 “Secretary Clinton and the Clinton Foundation Day” in Las Vegas, citing the distribution of 20,000 doses of naloxone to the Foundation for Recovery, and commitment “to supporting the Foundation of Recovery’s mission to support recovery and end overdose in Nevada.”

Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released provisional data for 2022 estimating that 109,680 people died from drug overdoses throughout the year, the highest on record. This is a slight uptick from 2021 after a decade of steady increases. Over two thirds of overdose deaths are from opioids, with the majority of those occurring from synthetic opioids like fentanyl. This month, the White House separately released data showing that over the past 12 months, there were more than 210,000 nonfatal opioid overdoses.

At today’s visit, Secretary Clinton spoke with Donica and Rob, two individuals in recovery whose lives were saved by naloxone. They expressed how critical naloxone was — not just in saving them during an overdose, but creating the pathway to recovery.

“Where I was at, is where the naloxone was at, and that’s what’s so important, said Rob. “Today I live an amazing life, I’m the outreach director for the Shine a Light Foundation, I’m the programs manager at Crossroads, I’m an active member of this community, and none of that happens without stuff like this.”