Create more safe recovery sites within Minnesota cites outside of the twin cites.

 

This bill will fund the creation of eleven more safe recovery sites in other major Minnesota cities such as Duluth, St

Cloud, and Rochester, etc. Causing the total to become twenty-two within the state. This addition of more safe recovery

sites within the state of Minnesota will help people who have opioid use disorder with known opioids such as fentanyl or

heroin. Through slowly weaning them off the drug with a different opioid known as Morphine, which is used by hospitals.

 

This bill is to help those that have issues with opioid use disorder, due to the recent increase in said disorder within

recent years. The disorder is a large cause of death within the state but especially within Native American and African

American communities. Native Americans have a death rate 10x higher than White Americans (192 per 100,000 residents

compared to 19 per 100,000 residents), and for Black Americans the death rate is 3x higher (67 per 100,000 residents).

 

Safe recovery sites are places that give people access to things like; sterile syringes, Naloxone/Narcan kits as well as

a trained staff member that can administer a kit in case of an overdose, testing for fentanyl and other opioids,

education for those who have the addiction on they can get housing and further help. Opioids are a class of drugs that

come from, or mimic, natural substances found within the opium poppy plant. They tend to produce a variety of effects,

including pain relief. “Opioid” is the proper term, but opioid drugs may also be called opiates, painkillers or

narcotics. An opioid use disorder is when a person has an addiction to opioids, which can result in physical dependence,

with a risk of overdose and death.

 

Safe recovery sites already have funding each year from the state government of $3 million dollars, so none would need

to be created.

 

The Department of Human Services within Minnesota will oversee the building/creation of the eleven new safe recovery

sites.

 

This bill will go into effect June 15, 2026, and will end as soon as all eleven buildings are completed in the major

cities that are agreed upon.