ACT UP Philadelphia

Polysubstanuse use occurs when two or more drugs are taken together, either intentionally (eg. having a beer and smoking some w**d) or unintentionally (eg. injecting some h3r0in that's mixed with b4rbitu4tes)

Maryland has a high rate of intentional AND unintentional poly substance use

Only 15% of samples collected by the Rapid Anaylasis of Drugs program in Q4 of 2024 fully matched what the person intended to buy with 58% of samples containing atleast one intended substance while containing unintended substances as well.

so remember ALWAYS RESPOND TO SUSPECTED OVERDOSE WITH NALOXONE AND RESCUE BREATHING even if you think it's unlikely that an opioid is present.

we might not always know what's in our drugs, but WE DO KNOW naloxone works on opioids, regardless of the other drugs present, and adding rescue breathing can help a person come to,

read more on RADs' (Rapid Analysis of Drugs, a program in MD that collects samples of drugs from around the state and tests them to give us a snap shot of what is happening in the city) newsletter!
bmorehrc.com/radcy24

(new quarterly report for 2025 also available visit health.maryland.gov/pha/NALOXONE/pages/RAD)