Washington, DC, February 13, 2020 — The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), representing the country’s nearly 3,000 local health departments, has awarded over $600,000 in funding to seven Overdose Response Strategy (ORS) states to help address the opioid crisis in their communities. With support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), these funds will support seven ORS state teams to explore new collaborative approaches for combatting the opioid crisis through evidence-based, data-driven, opioid-involved overdose prevention interventions designed to address community challenges related to drug overdoses.
“With local health departments on the front lines of the opioid epidemic, NACCHO is working with its members to prevent misuse, reduce overdose deaths, link people to care, and build community resilience,” said NACCHO Chief Executive Officer Lori Tremmel Freeman. “Partnerships with the CDC, and now with the Overdose Response Strategy states and the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas program, will increase existing outreach and create new avenues to direct attention to this crisis in local communities most affected. We look forward to supporting these pilot sites to reduce the terrible impact of the opioid crisis and save lives.”
The ORS is a public health/public safety collaboration between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Office of National Drug Control Policy’s (ONDCP) High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) program, supporting joint efforts to reduce overdose deaths at the local, state, and regional levels. Pilot projects will address drug overdose prevention strategies that engage both local public health and public safety, and will be implemented in collaboration with the regional HIDTA program. Goals of the project include building the evidence base for effective overdose prevention and response interventions, improving response to the opioid overdose epidemic, and leveraging the ORS structure to enhance community-level public health and public safety collaborations. NACCHO and CDC will work closely with the ORS state teams in each funded pilot project site to develop, execute, and evaluate the pilots.
Below is a description of the proposed projects in the seven funded states.
IMPLEMENTATION
Chicago HIDTA and Cook County Sheriff’s Office ($143,038 Award). This project will build upon Cook County Sheriff’s Treatment Response Team (TRT), which was launched earlier this year. The TRT comprises a narcotics police investigator trained in diversion, three licensed clinical social workers, and two drug addiction counselors. The team uses Overdose Detection Mapping Application Program (ODMAP) data to reach out after an overdose to offer linkage and transportation to care and support services. This funding will enable the program to expand linkage to care services and allow for the development of trainings and educational materials for clients, their families, and project staff.
New York/New Jersey HIDTA and Ocean County Health Department ($72,757.98 award). This project seeks to expand the Brick Township Police Department pilot, an overdose fatality review program, to four additional police departments. Funding will be used to hire an outreach specialist to provide linkage to care and additional assistance to naloxone recipients and their families. Additionally, a newly created database will allow for better tracking of naloxone dispensing data and will help determine local needs for prevention activities.
New York/New Jersey HIDTA and Catholic Charities Care Coordination Services ($47, 872.28 award). This project aims to build upon and rigorously evaluate the Catholic Charities Care Coordination Services’ (CCCCS) Harm Reduction Reentry Wrap Around Project. Prior to release from the Albany County Correctional Facility, a Harm Reduction Re-entry Specialist from the CCCCS works with the individual to provide wraparound services designed to support their transition to a community MAT provider. Services also include providing overdose trainings for all MAT participants with access to naloxone at discharge; linkage and referral to housing resources; peer recovery services; and linkage to other vital health care services. This funding will be used to expand upon this program by hiring an additional re-entry specialist and to assist with evaluation efforts.
Washington/Baltimore HIDTA and Carroll County Health Department ($126,141 award). This project will establish a post-overdose outreach program that uses a team composed of a peer recovery specialist and a law enforcement officer. Face-toface outreach will be conducted within seven days of an overdose to offer linkage to treatment services, leave behind naloxone, and offer relevant education.
Atlanta-Carolinas HIDTA and Grady Health Systems ($50,000 award). Last year, the Grady’s Mobile Integrated Health (MIH) Program received ORS pilot project funding to develop and implement their Post-overdose Outreach Program (POP). The MIHPOP team consists of a Certified Addiction Recovery Empowerment Specialist (CARES) certified Peer Support Specialist, an Advanced Emergency Medical Technician, and a nurse practitioner. Individuals who present with an opioid overdose at Grady Memorial Hospital are offered linkage to appropriate community resources. Interested individuals then receive weekly visits by the MIH-POP team in a location of their choice for ongoing coaching, support, and linkage to treatment and other services. This second-year funding will allow the team to hire an additional peer support specialist that can reach out to a greater number of participants, and for the expansion of their evaluation efforts.
Atlanta-Carolinas HIDTA and North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition ($49,420 award). Last year’s ORS pilot project funding enabled the North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition (NCHRC) and the Overdose Response Strategy Public Health Analyst, with support from the Atlanta-Carolinas HIDTA, to expand jail-based overdose prevention education programs in three new counties — Cumberland, Catawba, and Haywood — with existing NCHRC presence. This second year of funding will allow them to continue operating the program by supporting staff who provide the jail-based overdose education and linkage to care upon exit. Funding will also enable the team to develop and implement a training component for jail staff on the opioid epidemic and overdose risks, and will help to further evaluation efforts.
PLANNING
New England HIDTA and Turning Point Recovery Center of Springfield, VT Inc. ($42,243.60 award). This project will expand upon an existing post-overdose outreach program that uses a team consisting of a police social worker and a trained recovery coach from the Springfield Turning Point Recovery Center. The team offers linkage to treatment, harm reduction services, housing assistance, and other social services. Through this planning award, a partnership will be created with the Springfield Hospital to reach individuals that suffered from an overdose, but did not interact with law enforcement. This funding will also allow the team to establish a model to help them develop processes and protocols for partners across a variety of fields and industries to come together to share information related to recent drug overdose events.
For more information, please contact NACCHO at [email protected].
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About NACCHO
The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) represents the nation’s nearly 3,000 local governmental health departments. These city, county, metropolitan, district, and tribal departments work every day to protect and promote health and well-being for all people in their communities. For more information about NACCHO, please visit www.naccho.org.
