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Will County health officials report slight rise in early-2025 opioid deaths, highlight Narcan distribution and new services
Summary
Will County public-health officials reported a small increase in opioid deaths early in 2025, described expanded Narcan and testing-strip distribution across the county, and highlighted the department's redesigned 2025 annual report and reopening of an intensive outpatient substance-use program.
Dr. Kathleen Burke, delivering the Will County Health Department's public-health and safety report, told the board the county saw a small uptick in opioid deaths in early 2025: "In January we had four deaths, and then one in February and one in March," she said, while stressing that overall counts remain low.
Burke said recent deaths were concentrated among men and that most decedents were white (about 68 percent) or Black (about 29 percent). She warned that several smaller communities that historically had no fatalities — including Braidwood and Homer Township — each recorded a recent death, a shift that prompted officials to expand outreach and preparedness.
To reduce overdose risk, Burke said the department distributed Narcan widely and placed drug-test strips across the county. "We distributed 1,244 boxes of Narcan last month and 268 fentanyl, xylazine and related test strips," she said, adding these supplies are available at 58 locations and that the department is tracking use and replacement.
Burke also said the department is monitoring a potent synthetic opioid identified in nearby metro-area jurisdictions and that, while Will County has not yet confirmed cases, staff are watching toxicology reports and coordinating with regional partners.
The report included program updates: the county's substance-use intensive outpatient program is scheduled to accept its first intensive outpatient cohort on April 13, and the health department continues clinical training and partnerships with local hospitals and recovery organizations.
Kevin Jude, the department's communications program manager, introduced the 2025 annual report at the meeting and described a redesign that shortens narrative content and emphasizes data and community outreach. "We tried to be a little bit shorter, more concise, less narrative, let the numbers really speak for themselves," Jude said. The report was posted online at the end of February and hard copies were distributed at the meeting.
The department also noted a successful Joint Commission accreditation visit with no high-risk observations; staff have 30 days to submit corrective actions for any minor findings.
What happens next: officials said they will continue to monitor overdose trends, collect Narcan-use data from distribution sites, and report back on program uptake and the April reopening of the intensive outpatient program.
