Dear John,

This week, Senator Baldwin and Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) introduced the Safe Response Act, bipartisan legislation to reauthorize a grant program that allows states, local government entities, and Tribes to train and provide resources to first responders to respond to drug overdoses.

“The opioid crisis has left thousands of families across Wisconsin with an empty seat at the dinner table. As we start to turn the tide on this epidemic, we need to double down on what is working and ensure communities have the tools they need to reverse overdoses and poisonings,” said Senator Baldwin. “I’m proud to back this bipartisan bill to ensure first responders have the training they need to use lifesaving tools like Narcan and protect Wisconsin families from the heartbreak of losing a loved one too soon.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), there were 80,391 drug overdose deaths in the United States in 2024. Of those, over 50,000 overdose deaths were due to opioids, including fentanyl. This marked a sharp decline from the previous year — a decrease of 26.9% from the 110,037 deaths estimated in 2023 – in part due to the availability of opioid reversal drugs like naloxone.

The 2018 SUPPORT Act included a grant program to provide funding for states, local government entities, Indian Tribes, and tribal organizations to train and provide resources to first responders to respond to an overdose. Senator Baldwin's bipartisan Safe Response Act would reauthorize this grant program, included as part of the bipartisan SUPPORT Act, providing $57 million per year for fiscal years 2026 through 2030 for grants to first responders and those in key community sectors to respond to overdoses. Grants may be used to:

Ensure that first responders and other members of key community sectors have the knowledge and training to utilize overdose reversal devices or administer overdose reversal medications, such as naloxone;
Provide technical assistance and training about how first responders and other members of key community sectors, such as first SUD treatment providers and emergency medical service agencies, can better protect themselves in the event of exposure to such drugs;
Establish processes, protocols, and mechanisms for referral to appropriate treatment, which may include an outreach coordinator or team to connect individuals receiving opioid overdose reversal drugs to follow-up services; and
Educate first responders and members of key community sectors about the need to follow standard safe operating procedures in instances of exposure to fentanyl, carfentanil, and other dangerous and illicit drugs.

Senator Baldwin’s bipartisan Safe Response Act has garnered strong support from local, state, and national public safety leaders and organizations, including the Wisconsin Professional Police Association, Wisconsin State Fire Chiefs Association, Racine Police Chief Alexander Ramirez, Milwaukee Fire Chief Aaron Lipski, Kenosha Fire Chief Daniel Tilton, Green Bay Metro Fire Chief Matthew Knott, Rock County Sheriff Curt Fell, Kenosha City Administrator and former Kenosha Chief of Police John Morrissey, Waukesha Mayor Shawn Reilly, Waukesha Fire Chief Robert Goplin, Waukesha Police Chief Dan Thompson, Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway, Mothers Against Prescription Drug Abuse (MAPDA), Big Cities Health Coalition, National Association of Police Organizations, National Council of Urban Indian Health, and Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO). Read more here.