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Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
Linn County Public Health adds gun locks to harm reduction vending machines
The locks are another tool the vending machines use to promote community health
Dec. 2, 2025 4:16 pm, Updated: Dec. 2, 2025 4:34 pm
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In addition to Naloxone, menstrual products and wound care kits, Linn County’s harm reduction vending machines now dispense gun locks.
The change comes from collaboration between Linn County Public Health, the Substance Misuse Committee of Linn County, the Cedar Rapids Police Department and Project ChildSafe.
Harm reduction is a broad term that describes actions taken to keep individuals and their community safe. The harm reduction vending machines contain items that reduce risk for multiple public health issues: Naloxone for opioid overdoses, condoms for sexually transmitted infections and now gun locks for gun violence prevention.
The locks were provided by Project ChildSafe, a national program that promotes gun safety through education and free gun locks. Cable-style locks, the kind the organization distributes, consist of a cable threaded through the firearm to prevent it from being loaded or fired.
According to data from the Cedar Rapids Police Department, there were 34 gun-related deaths and 144 gun-related injuries in the city from 2020-2024.
“This is a toolbox that can help to protect children and unauthorized individuals from utilizing someone's gun and causing harm to themselves or someone else,” said Heather Meador, clinical branch supervisor at Linn County Public Health.
The locks are available for free at six of the county’s seven harm reduction vending machines. They are:
- Linn County Mental Health Access Center: 501 13th St. NW, Cedar Rapids
- CRUSH of Iowa Recovery Community Center: 317 Seventh Ave. SE, Suite 304, Cedar Rapids
- Linn County Community Services Building: 1240 26th Ave. Ct. SW, Cedar Rapids
- Hiawatha Public Library: 150 W. Willman St., Hiawatha
- Marion Public Library: 1101 Sixth Ave., Marion
- Gary’s Foods: 715 First Ave. S., Mount Vernon
Comments: fern.alling@thegazette.com
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