HARRISBURG, Pa. — It may look like a normal hi-tech vending machine, but "Health to Go" is not your average snack dispenser.
"We have a lot of different items like condoms and also things that are addressing other terms of health, including personal care kits as well other items," said Dr. Alice Zhang with the Penn State College of Medicine.
"Health to Go" is an innovative step towards making healthcare more accessible to the residents of Harrisburg.
"The machine really came out of the COVID pandemic and the increase in overdoses we were seeing and the need for access for Narcan and other life-saving items and expanded from there," she said.
The machine is accessible to the public 24/7 and located outside the entrance to the emergency room at UPMC Harrisburg.
"It meets the patient where they are so they don't have to overcome, if you will, some of the burdens of traveling to a store or pharmacy," said Dr. Anthony Guarracino with UPMC. "It also provides access to other community resources such as food resources for housing, mental health and things like that."
And unlike other vending machines, this one doesn't cost a penny.
"We were also intentional with packaging as much as possible, putting them in an envelope so if you grab something, it's hard to tell what you're grabbing. Our hope was to try to reduce the stigma and make people feel comfortable getting these items," said Dr. Zhang.
So far, it seems to be working. Dr. Guarracino says that during the first month of service, the vending machine reported 500 items dispensed to 100 users.
As the machine gets used, the supplies will be adjusted accordingly to community demand. For more information about the vending machine or the services it offers, click here.