Community Partners with the San Francisco Department of Public Health to Hold Overdose Prevention Summit

San Francisco, CA – The San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH) and partnering community-based organizations are holding the City’s first Overdose Prevention Summit on Thursday, Jan. 30 to address overdose disparities impacting Black/African American San Franciscans.

The inaugural summit, themed “Unity in Community,” joins voices on the frontlines of San Francisco’s overdose response to develop culturally informed prevention strategies to effect real and lasting change.

“In San Francisco, Black/African Americans are dying from overdoses at a rate five-times higher than other people and that is unacceptable. While there are many public health interventions providing culturally informed services to the Black/African American community, SFDPH recognizes those initiatives are not enough to close the disparity gap,” said Dr. Grant Colfax, SFDPH Director of Health. “We know that when the San Francisco community works together that it can lead to great progress. This summit is the start of a new era in a community-driven response to saving Black/African American lives.”

Nationwide, Black/African Americans, and particularly older Black men, experience the highest overdose death rates among any demographic. In San Francisco, that rate has been historically around five-times higher than the overdose mortality rate among whites and other groups.

To address overdose disparities, in 2024 SFDPH began holding regular stakeholder meetings with more than 30 community groups and substance use treatment service organizations to address overdose within the Black/African American community with educational and cultural awareness. The summit is the second event to come from the partnership. Last August, the group held the City’s first Overdose Awareness Week event for the Black/African American community.

“The idea of creating a summit has generated enthusiasm and inspired our community to come together and explore effective strategies for addressing this critical issue,” said Antwan Matthews, Director of Youth Programs at Code Tenderloin and one of the summit planners. “It’s also essential to showcase to city and state leaders that the Black community is fully capable of creating impactful solutions for our public health challenges.”

While San Francisco decreased overdoses by 22% in 2024 compared to 2023 and has increased the number of people receiving buprenorphine and residential treatment by 52% and 35%, respectively, Black/African Americans continue to be disproportionally represented among overdose decedents. Despite representing just 6% of the San Francisco population, 28% of preliminary overdose deaths in 2024 were among Black/African Americans.

“This summit is needed to bring together service providers with different perspectives to address common goals,” said Richard Beal, Director of Recovery Services at the Tenderloin Housing Clinic and a summit planner. “I hope we can work together in unity to identify strategies that will help reduce the overdose deaths in our community. There is a huge buzz in the community about this summit: Providers are excited about working together to implement positive change.”

Registration is now closed for this free event, as it is filled to capacity. The day will include panel discussions and workshops on stigma, treatment options, medications for opioid use disorder, and supporting and empowering vulnerable San Franciscans.

“Unity in Community: Overdose Prevention Summit” will be held in the San Francisco Main Library, 100 Larkin St., from 9:15 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 30.

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About The San Francisco Department of Public Health

The mission of the San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH) is to protect and promote the health of all San Franciscans. SFDPH achieves its mission through the work of three main divisions – the San Francisco Health Network, Population Health Division and Behavioral Health Division. The San Francisco Health Network is a community of top-rated clinics, hospitals and programs that serves more than 125,000 people annually at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, Laguna Honda Hospital, and ambulatory care clinics across the city. The Population Health Division monitors diseases, promotes health, protects consumers, and monitors and responds to public health threats. The Behavioral Health Services Division provides mental health and substance use prevention, early intervention, and treatment services. DPH programs represent and celebrate the city’s diversity, serving individuals and families of all backgrounds and identities, regardless of immigration or insurance status. The Health Commission is the Department’s governing body and provides oversight and policy direction. Visit us at sf.gov/publichealth.