Brief Report: Naloxone Decline Among African American Kentuckians

Authors

• Rayven Peterson, University of KentuckyFollow
• Mona Goggins, University of Kentucky
• Destin L. Mizelle, University of KentuckyFollow
• Brittany Miller-Roenigk, University of KentuckyFollow
• Candice Hargons, University of KentuckyFollow
• Danelle Stevens-Watkins, University of KentuckyFollow

Abstract

Background: Opioid-involved overdose fatalities among African Americans continue to rise. The current study examines African Americans who reported use of opioids in the past 6 months and declined overdose education and free naloxone.   Method: Eligible participants included African American Kentuckians who used opioids in the past 6 months and consented to a larger study examining their opioid use. This paper qualitatively explored their reasons for declining overdose education and naloxone using an adjusted and inductive application of structural tabular thematic analysis.   Results: Out of 588 participants, 70 (12%) declined naloxone: the most cited reason for declining naloxone was already possessing the medication. Additional reasons range from not needing or wanting naloxone to no longer using opioids.   Conclusions: The findings suggest that African Americans’ hesitancy to carry naloxone can be due to pervasive structural issues. Despite these findings, there remain disproportionate drug treatment rates and mortality from overdose among African Americans.

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2026

Notes/Citation Information

Copyright © 2025 by AMERSA, Inc. (Association for Multidisciplinary Education and Research in Substance use and Addiction)

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

https://doi.org/10.1177/29767342251352271

Funding Information

The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: Research reported in this manuscript was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA: R01-DA049333; PI: Danielle Stevens-Watkins). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

Repository Citation

Peterson, Rayven; Goggins, Mona; Mizelle, Destin L.; Miller-Roenigk, Brittany; Hargons, Candice; and Stevens-Watkins, Danelle, "Brief Report: Naloxone Decline Among African American Kentuckians" (2026). Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology Faculty Publications. 73.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/edp_facpub/73