DuPage getting $390,000 to fight opioid epidemic

WASHINGTON (AP) - A suburban Chicago health department is getting $390,000 from the federal government to help train first responders in how to administer a drug that can save the life of someone suffering from a heroin overdose.

In a news release, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth of Illinois say the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded the money to the DuPage County Health Department to support what is called the DuPage Narcan Program. The money will be used to develop a training program and supply the antidote - called Narcan - to first responders.

Like communities across the country, DuPage County has seen a dramatic rise in opioid deaths and a growing number of those communities are equipping police offices and other first responders with the antidote.