BILLINGS— State officials say that Narcan kits are successfully combating opioid drug overdoses in Montana schools, two years after the Montana Department of Justice placed them in the state’s high schools and middle schools.
The Narcan kits contain naloxone, a life-saving medication that reverses the overdose. The DOJ placed the first kit in Billings Senior High School in September 2024.
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“They were supposed to go into every middle school and every high school in the state of Montana,” said Will Janisch, DOJ drug intelligence officer. “If there is any middle school or high school out there that doesn't have one... let us know so we can get that for you.”
Related: Montana AG puts Narcan in high schools with goal to prevent fentanyl deaths
According to Billings Public Schools, the kits have been used twice since the program started in 2024— once in a middle school and once in a high school.
Janisch told MTN the kits are a response to an increasing number of fentanyl overdoses.
“Ever since illicit fentanyl came on the market, we have been seeing more and more fatal overdoses,” he said.
According to the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, the number of reported fatal fentanyl overdoses increased by 30% between 2024 and 2025.
“One of the causes was we saw more carfentanil... Carfentanil is 100 times more potent than fentanyl,” said Janisch. “We're seeing fentanyl made to look like Adderall. We're seeing fentanyl made to look like Tylenol.”
Placing Narcan kits in schools is becoming more common across the country, according to Andrea Thomas, founder of Facing Fentanyl, which partnered with the DOJ for the program in 2024.
“Montana was very advanced in wanting to get these into the schools without any resistance,” said Thomas.
Thomas also founded Voices for Awareness and Armour Families. Her goal is to spread awareness about fentanyl before overdoses happen.
“Hopefully we never have to use these kits,” said Thoams. “We want to get the prevention, the awareness, the education out there to prevent this from even happening. But when it does, it's very important to have naloxone available.”
