According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2016, 63,632 people died from drug overdose.

At that time, Pennsylvania had the fifth highest rate of death due to drug overdose in the nation.

In an effort to combat the ongoing opioid crisis, on Thursday, regional locations across Pennsylvania, from libraries and fire companies, to health authorities, gave away free doses of naloxone, an opioid antagonist that can revive someone who has overdosed.

Nate Wardle, press secretary at Pennsylvania Department of Health, said that more than 5,100 kits were distributed to over 80 locations throughout the state.

Each kit came equipped with two doses of naloxone and instructions on how to use it.

In Carbon County, kits were being distributed at the Carbon County State Health Center, out of the Gnaden Huetten Professional Building, in Lehighton.

“One thing that we were aware of is that there’s people who want to have naloxone, whether that’s because they have a loved one who’s suffering from opioid use disorder, or whether they want to have it in case they come across somebody who has overdosed and needs reviving,” Wardle said.

“We wanted to make sure that people who want naloxone can have it without any barriers, whether that’s insurance or financially. We wanted to provide it to the public.

“Our goal is to get naloxone into the hands of people who need it,” he added.

The mass distribution was coordinated by the Opioid Command Center, which consists of 16 state agencies and commissions.

The distribution is only one part of the state’s plans to address the opioid crisis, which Wardle said is defined by three pillars: prevention, rescue and treatment.