The new facility in Providence, operated by the nonprofit Project Weber/RENEW, provides a place for people to use drugs under medical supervision. Rhode Island is the only state to have approved and written regulations for supervised-consumption sites.

On Tuesday afternoon, organizers cut the ribbon on the first state-sanctioned safe consumption site for illegal drugs in the United States. The facility—located in Providence, Rhode Island—stems from a 2021 bill creating a pilot program for overdose prevention centers (OPCs) in the state.

Members of the Biden White House celebrated the report but said there's still more work to be done to further reduce overdose deaths.

Drug overdose deaths fell 17% between July 2023 and July 2024, new data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows.

In news that suggest the U.S. opioid epidemic may be easing, drug overdose deaths fell 17% between July 2023 and July 2024. Per new data released Wednesday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,