Mariah Smith

Mariah Smith is the Outreach Coordinator for the New Jersey Department of Health’s (NJDOH) Office of Opioid Response and Policy (ORP). She leads the Overdose Hotspot Initiative, which targets overdose disparities among Black residents by prioritizing outreach, education, harm reduction, peer navigators, and community engagement in areas of the state with the highest rates of overdose deaths. Mariah coordinates and oversees the distribution of critical harm reduction supplies, including naloxone, fentanyl test strips, xylazine test strips, wound care kits, and hygiene kits to nearly 50 partner organizations across the state. Her work bridges public health and social equity, centering the needs of people who use drugs (PWUD) and advancing overdose prevention efforts statewide.

The New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH) is the state’s public health agency, dedicated to improving the health of all New Jersey residents. Its Office of Opioid Response and Policy (ORP) leads overdose surveillance, prevention, and policy efforts. ORP’s initiatives include outreach and education programs like the Overdose Hotspot Initiative and Community Response Teams, and health system efforts to expand access to evidence-based addiction care. This includes hospital training, technical assistance, and a SAMHSA FR-CARA-funded project deploying referral technology for first responders. ORP also oversees 21 Overdose Fatality Review Teams and leads the CDC-funded Overdose Data to Action grant. The department's current priorities focus on expanding harm reduction and access to addiction treatment medications across all care settings.