Oh, what a groundbreaking revelation! It turns out, when you actually pay people who use drugs to distribute naloxone, they do it effectively. Who would’ve thought that compensating individuals for their work could be so revolutionary? In the thrilling locales of Holyoke and Gloucester, MA, a daring experiment unfolded. They decided to give cash to people (lovingly referred to as “peers”) for handing out naloxone kits. And guess what? It worked.

Over the course of 22 nail-biting months, these peers distributed a whopping 1,104 naloxone kits. And the cost for this monumental effort? A mere $10,510. That’s right, for the price of a decent used car, they managed to potentially save hundreds of lives. The distribution rates were through the roof, reaching up to 222 kits per 100K population per month in one community. Talk about efficiency!

But wait, there’s more. These peers didn’t just hand out naloxone to their buddies. No, they went above and beyond, reaching individuals who wouldn’t normally waltz through the doors of syringe service programs. It’s almost as if paying people for their labor and treating them with dignity actually motivates them to do a good job. Who knew?

Despite the obvious success, it seems the world hasn’t quite caught on to this revolutionary idea. The underutilization of compensated peer models is apparently due to “funding and organizational barriers.” Because, of course, finding a little extra cash and organizing things is far more challenging than, say, preventing fatal overdoses.

In conclusion, paying peers to distribute naloxone in communities ravaged by opioid-related overdoses isn’t just a good idea; it’s a no-brainer. But hey, what do I know? I’m just summarizing the research here.