Self-Service

Wisconsin deploys life-saving vending machines

Photo: Adobe Stock

March 28, 2024

Appleton, Wisconsin is now home to two vending machines offering life-saving products.

The machines, located in Outagamie County, are funded by a grant and carry nasal naloxone and fentanyl test strips, according to a Post Crescent report.

One of the machines also offers gun locks and the other also offers hygiene products.

All the vending items are free, and the machines are the first in the tri-county area.

"We are in our fourth wave of our opioid epidemic — which means that our drug supply has never been more toxic," Carri Ciske, substance use prevention community health educator for Outagamie County Public Health, told the news outlet. "It is incredibly dangerous for individuals who use drugs, friends and family members — and even, like, a curious teenager who wants to experience what an Adderall might do. Those products are being laced with fentanyl when they're not true prescriptions."