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Prevention Resource Network‘s mobile Harm Reduction Center – which provides a safe, non-stigmatizing space for people who use substances – is now active in Monmouth and northern Ocean counties. 

Operating in Asbury Park, Brick, Eatontown, Keansburg, Keyport, Long Branch, Red Bank and Toms River, the vehicle provides safe access to the overdose-prevention treatment naloxone; sterile syringes; and other supplies. The mobile unit also helps to safely dispose of syringes and offers access and guidance to substance use disorder treatment, health care and other support. 

The New Jersey Department of Health approved the mobile unit Aug. 31, which Gov. Phil Murphy declared Overdose Awareness Day. It was the state’s first new harm reduction center approval in five years, according to the NJDOH. The vehicle joins the state’s existing centers in Atlantic City, Asbury Park, Camden, Jersey City, Newark, Paterson and Trenton. 

“This initiative represents a significant step towards compassionate, effective support and enhanced quality of life for individuals living with drug-related challenges,” Shannon Preston, director of HIV community services at VNA Health Group, said in a statement. The Prevention Resource Network’s Harm Reduction Center is a program of VNA’s Children & Family Health Institute and the VNA of Central Jersey.

Cole Zaccaro, manager of harm reduction services at the Prevention Resource Network, added, “The rollout of the mobile unit represents a transformation not only in the perception toward those affected by substance use but also in how we support and empower them.” 

In 2022, 3,000 people in New Jersey died from an overdose, according to the NJDOH. The state has enacted legislative and legal battles to combat the opioid crisis, including a package of bills Murphy signed in January 2022 to expand harm-reduction services and other initiatives. Additionally, the state has been involved in numerous legal cases against pharmaceutical companies, including joining the $20.1 billion action in January against three major pharmacy chains and two drug makers. 

“While this settlement does not bring our loved ones back, it will bring resources to the state that will support programs and initiatives that save lives,” Murphy said at the time.