Over the past 7 days, Direct Relief has delivered 604 shipments of requested medical aid to 50 U.S. states and territories and 13 countries worldwide. The shipments contained 4.7M defined daily doses of medication.

Medications and supplies shipped this week included personal protective equipment, surgical necessities, rare disease therapies, and more.

One Year Later, Morocco Continues to Recover After Devastating Quake

The 2023 Morocco earthquake devastated the region, recording more than 2,900 casualties and over 5,500 injuries from the quake. Internal displacement in the country peaked at an estimated 500,000 and over 50,000 homes were totally or partially collapsed across the five provinces affected. The remote, largely indigenous Amazigh villages of the High Atlas Mountains that were most impacted by the earthquake are also home to many of the country’s most vulnerable populations.

In response to the earthquake, Direct Relief mobilized more than 20 tons of material aid as well as more than $600,000 in funding to support acute and long-term recovery efforts focused on search and rescue operations, emergency maternal and child health services, ambulance procurement, resilient solar power for health centers, and building of a community health center.

Recently, Direct Relief staff visited Morocco to meet with partner organizations that received emergency funding in response to the 2023 earthquake.

Direct Relief visited the ongoing construction of Mayshad Community Health Center in Tansghart, Al Haouz district. This primary health center will serve 687 families in the earthquake-affected, remote villages of Tansghart in the Atlas Mountains and is expected to be completed in early 2025.

Direct Relief staff also visited the Asni Women’s Health Center, which provides labor and delivery services, pre-and post-natal care, and general gynecological services for the area and clinicians there see an average of 80 women per day.

The 10 solar panels installed on the roof of the clinic provide the energy needed to consistently power essential medical equipment including newborn incubators, vaccine refrigerators, patient monitoring devices, as well as administrative systems for the center. This installation is one of 30 centers receiving solar panel systems as part of a $105,000 grant from Direct Relief to fund long-term earthquake recovery, implemented by local Moroccan NGO, the Illy Foundation.

U.S. Overdose Numbers Drop

For the first time in a decade, deaths in the U.S. due to drug overdose are down, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A decline of roughly 10.6 percent in deaths caused by drugs has been recorded by national surveys taken by the CDC. One reason for this decrease is due to the availability and education of naloxone, an overdose-reversing drug, according to public health experts.

Direct Relief has distributed more than 2.7 million doses of naloxone since 2017, including to public health departments, educational institutions, harm reduction groups, health centers, and free clinics across the United States.

Operational Snapshot

UNITED STATES

Direct Relief delivered 572 shipments containing 1.3M doses of medication during the past seven days to organizations, including the following:

Around the World

Globally, Direct Relief shipped over 3.4M defined daily doses of medication totaling 60,765 lbs., to countries including the following:

YEAR TO DATE

Since January 1, 2024, Direct Relief has delivered 18.1K shipments to 2,192 partner organizations in 54 U.S. states and territories and 86 countries. These shipments contained 333.8M defined daily doses of medication valued at $1.2B (wholesale) and totaled 4M lbs.