Capital Health System paid $13,000 for the new shipment of 530 doses of nasal-injected naloxone.
HOPEWELL TOWNSHIP -- The Mercer County Prosecutor's Office delivered a second shipment of heroin antidote kits to all the county's police agencies Thursday afternoon.
Acting Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo Onofri also announced a new initiative to combat the heroin addiction and abuse in the county, called the One Voice Initiative.
And, Onofri announced with Capital Health System CEO Dr. Al Maghazehe that the hospital company paid the $13,000 for the 530 doses of the antidote - nasal-injected naloxone.
The opiate reverser is also well known by the brand name Narcan.
"Heroin's cheap, readily available and we need to do something before our kids get hooked on it," Onofri said at the announcement, held at Capital Health's Hopewell Medical Center campus.
The prosecutor's office first equipped county police departments with the naloxone in November 2014, at a price tag of about $19,000, which the prosecutor's office paid for by using forfeiture funds.
Onofri said he met with Maghazehe several months ago and explained the 2014 batch was about to expire, and asked for help in replenishing the supply.
"Their answer was an immediate yes and they agreed to not only replace the expired Narcan but also replenish it on an on-going basis," Onofri said.
From Nov. 5, 2014 to Aug. 24, 2016, Mercer officers used the antidote 131 times, with 115 successful reversals. Ten patients died from overdoses once treated, and six were deemed "not sure" if the naloxone worked.
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After the announcement, police leaders from each agency were called to the front of the room and received a box with doses apportioned to the size of the department. Also receiving kits were the public safety departments from The College of New Jersey and Rider and Princeton universities, and Mercer County park rangers.
Meanwhile, Onofri said his office will be starting the One Voice Initiative, a coordination and coalescing of overdose and addition voices and resources - including fait leaders - to deliver a focused message.
The initiative was pioneered by Hunterdon County Prosecutor Anthony Kearns, Onofri said.
The initiative will work with existing organizations, like City of Angels, the Heroin and Opioid Task Force, and programs already underway in towns like Hamilton and Robbinsville.
Onofri also said he's worked with Hamilton Mayor Kelly Yaede on anti-heroin initiatives and those efforts have yielded a plan for this school year in Hamilton to teach to teach the Overdose Prevention Act to health classes in the township's three high schools.
Part of the law provides for immunity from prosecution for someone for possession or use of illegal drugs if they call for help during an overdose situation. Many programs centers around this use the catch phrase, "Don't Run. Call 911."
Onofri hopes to expand such law explanations to all Mercer County high schools in the near future.
Kevin Shea may be reached at kshea@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@kevintshea. Find NJ.com on Facebook.