Holyoke committee hears updated needle-exchange totals, Narcan distribution; orders quarterly reports from Tapestry

The Holyoke Public Safety Committee heard updated harm‑reduction data from Tapestry on March 31, 2025, and voted that the nonprofit provide regular reports on needle distribution and collection.

At the meeting, Pedro Alvarez, Tapestry’s director of harm reduction operations, said that in the past year the program handled 314,160 syringes brought in and distributed 257,906 syringes, with 1,930 unique participants and 6,353 client encounters. He said the Holyoke site recorded about 370 wound‑care encounters and that nearly 3,000 naloxone (Narcan) kits were distributed by Holyoke harm‑reduction staff in the same period. Alvarez said roughly 20% of people seen engaged in further services such as substance‑use treatment, housing or medical referrals.

The committee’s order asking Tapestry for needle‑collection data (item 3 on the agenda) was introduced by Councilor Linda Bacon and discussed by committee members and Tapestry staff. Councilors moved that Tapestry provide quarterly reporting on the numbers of needles distributed and collected; the committee recorded the order as complied with following…