Recent News

Baltimore City Observes International Overdose Awareness Day

Aug 31st, 2015

Officials across Baltimore City today observed International Overdose Awareness Day to mark the ongoing fight against overdoses in Baltimore and to remember the 1,113 lives lost to overdose over the last five years.

Baltimore City Health Department (BCHD) hosted activities throughout the day, including:

  • Announcing a donation of approximately 6,500 lifesaving EVZIO® naloxone auto-injectors, a prescription for use in opioid overdose emergencies, from pharmaceutical company Kaléo;
  • Free naloxone trainings at five “DontDie.org” bus and Metro station poster sites throughout the city; and
  • A remembrance vigil hosted by Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake where 1,113 purple roses—one for each life lost in Baltimore to overdose in the last 5 years— were placed at War Memorial Plaza to honor loved ones who have passed away from substance abuse and to encourage those still struggling with the disease of addiction.

Baltimore City leaders highlight overdose problem with Overdose Awareness Day

Aug 31st, 2015

In a city with a history of overdoses and addiction, more help is on the way to stop the deadly path of drugs.

Baltimore health department gets donation of heroin overdose drug injectors

Aug 31st, 2015

The manufacturer of injectors that allow people to administer a heroin overdose drug is giving 6,500 of the devices to the Baltimore City Health Department.

A Prepared Community Is A Safe Community

Aug 27th, 2015

Earthquakes.  Tornadoes.  Hurricanes. Winter Storms. Flooding. Civil unrest. We have experienced all of these emergencies in Baltimore in recent years and while each situation comes with its own set of challenges, each is also similar in that individual preparedness plays a major role in how safe the public remains during and immediately after the emergency. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) 2012 National Survey, 46 percent of respondents believe that natural disasters will occur in their community; however, nearly 70 percent of Americans have not participated in a preparedness drill or exercise in their home, school, or workplace in the past two years.

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Issues With Calls To Field Health Services

Aug 24th, 2015

The Baltimore City Health Department’s Field Health Services office has been experiencing problems with phone lines (busy signals, dropped calls, etc). We are actively working to identify and repair the phone lines/extensions that are causing the problems. Thank you in advance for your patience as we attempt to provide our clients with service and resolve this urgent issue.

Baltimore City urges vaccinations before back-to-school (WMAR) August 24, 2015

Aug 24th, 2015

As Baltimore City students are getting their fresh hair and new school outfits, officials want to make sure immunizations are on that to-do list. Health Commissioner Leana Wen joined Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake at the East Health clinic on North Caroline Street to discuss the importance of vaccinations.

"Local New Initiative Hopes To Keep Teens From Smoking" (WJZ) August 21, 2015

Aug 21st, 2015

More than one in six Baltimore City high school students used tobacco products for the first time last year. A new health initiative is hoping to change that. The city is hoping retailers follow the law.

"Vaccinations For Students = A Pass To Class"

Aug 21st, 2015

Two recent cases of potential measles in Baltimore, each of which proved to be negative after lab testing, serve as a reminder and a call to action to ensure children are vaccinated against preventable diseases. At an immunization clinic at the city’s Eastern Health Clinic today, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen and Karl Perry, Chief School Supports Officer for the Baltimore City Public Schools, reminded parents and caregivers that students must have all required state immunizations in order to participate in school, which opens next Monday, August 31.​

"Baltimore wants to use 311 to stop underage smoking" (Daily Record) August 21, 2015

Aug 21st, 2015

City officials want to crack down on tobacco sales to minors, and are asking for Baltimore residents to be on the lookout. Anyone who notices a business selling tobacco products to people under 18 can now call 311 to report it; the city’s health department will investigate each incident, officials announced Friday.

 

"They’ve overdosed, or seen other people die. Now they’re learning to save victims’ lives" (Washington Post) August 21, 2015

Aug 21st, 2015

The men filled the dark wooden benches of a drug court here Thursday morning, watching as Kevin Burns attached what looked like the end of a syringe and an attachment for nasal spray together in an attempt to revive his overdose victim. “His lips are a little bit blue,” said Burns, who works on drug overdose prevention for Baltimore through the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “If he doesn’t breathe, he will die. We have five to six minutes. That’s all we have.”

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