WCHD Adds 10 Additional Red Naloxone Distribution Boxes

JOLIET, Ill. – The Will County Health Department continues its efforts to reduce opioid overdose deaths, making access to the life-saving, overdose-reversing drug Naloxone (Narcan) easier by placing red Naloxone distribution boxes throughout the County. Ten additional red distribution boxes were recently added, bringing the total red distribution boxes in Will County to 20. The new red boxes expanded the number of communities with easy access to Naloxone.

“Our strategy is working, and we are seeing results,” said Dr. Kathleen Burke, Will County Health Department’s Program Coordinator for Substance Use Initiatives. “In 2024 Will County reduced the number of opioid deaths by 30%. We are at the same pace to reduce deaths in 2025. Twenty percent of the Naloxone distributed is through the red box program. We are very excited to see an uptick in parents preparing to send their kids to college by including Naloxone.”

Naloxone is a medication designed to rapidly reverse an opioid overdose and is available through the Illinois Department of Human Services/Substance Use Prevention & Recovery Access Narcan program free of charge to all individuals in Will County. Naloxone binds to opioid receptors in the brain and can reverse and block the effects of opioids. It can begin working within minutes to restore breathing, consciousness, and save a life.

All 20 of the Will County Health Department’s distribution boxes were donated by Saved My Life, an Illinois non-profit organized as a conduit to provide access to free Naloxone in public spaces and businesses throughout Illinois.

Red distribution boxes can be found at the following new locations:

Lewis University Campus – Three distribution boxes (1 University Parkway – Romeoville)
Recovery Community Center of Joliet (180 S. Chicago St. – Joliet)
University Park Village Hall (44 Towncenter Dr. – University Park)
DuPage Township Food Pantry (719 Parkwood Dr. – Romeoville)
Wilmington Coalition (1095 S. Water St. – Wilmington)
Beecher Police Department (250 W. Church Rd. – Beecher)
Provision Market Food Pantry (5430 W. Main St. – Monee)
Northern Illinois Food Pantry (171 S. Larkin Ave. – Joliet)
Frankfort Public Library District (21119 S. Pfeiffer Rd. – Frankfort)

Red distribution boxes can also be found at the following original locations in Will County.

Will County Health Department Main Office (501 Ella Ave. – Joliet)
Will County Community Health Center (1106 Neal Ave. – Joliet)
Will County Health Department Northern Branch Office (323 Quadrangle Dr. – Bolingbrook)
Will County Court House (100 W. Jefferson St – Joliet)
Will County Office Building (302 N. Chicago St. – Joliet)
Veterans Assistance Commission of Will County (2400 Glenwood Ave. – Suite 110 – Joliet)
White Oak Library District – Crest Hill Branch (20670 City Center Blvd. – Crest Hill)
White Oak Library District – Lockport Branch (121 E. 8th St. – Lockport)
White Oak Library District – Romeoville Branch (201 W. Normantown Rd. – Romeoville)

The goal of the distribution boxes is to make Naloxone more readily available to the public for emergency use. Opioid overdose deaths in Will County have been trending down in recent years. There were 112 opioid overdose deaths in 2022, 95 in 2023, and 64 in 2024. Through the end of July, there have been just 18 opioid overdose deaths in Will County in 2025.

The amount of Naloxone distributed by the Will County Health Department has been growing every year. Over 8,000 boxes of Naloxone were distributed in 2022, more than 11,000 boxes in 2023 and over 15,000 boxes in 2024. Nearly 5,000 boxes of Naloxone have been dispersed from the original 10 red distribution boxes since the red boxes were introduced in Will County in early 2024.

“We want the community to understand that many of the utilizers of these distribution boxes are people who are not using opioids, but they want to be able to assist in an emergency situation or perhaps they have a family member or friend who is struggling with a substance use disorder, and they want to be prepared,” said Burke. “I encourage everyone to keep naloxone with you, in your home, and in first aid kits as it’s a life-saving medication to use in a rescue situation and minutes count in an overdose situation.”

Residents interested in obtaining Naloxone can visit one of the red distribution box locations or can email sui@willcountyhealth.org. Naloxone training is also offered through the Will County Health Department by emailing sui@willcountyhealth.org