The Keystone Rural Health Consortia Inc. in Emporium has been awarded funds to help with the ongoing fight against opioid addiction.
On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) awarded $17,007,662 to Pennsylvania to combat the opioid crisis.
Keystone Rural Health will receive $167,000. The investments will enable HRSA-funded community health centers, rural organizations and academic institutions supporting residents in Pennsylvania to establish and expand access to integrated substance use disorder and mental health services.
The awards support HHS’s Five-Point Opioid Strategy, introduced under President Donald Trump in 2017. The number of patients receiving medication-assisted treatment for opioid addiction at HRSA-funded health centers increased 142 percent from 2016 to 2018 and, since Trump took office, the number of patients receiving buprenorphine, a common form of MAT, has increased 28 percent.
“Health centers and behavioral health providers are on the front lines of the fight against the opioid crisis and substance abuse, especially in rural communities,” said HHS Secretary Alex Azar. “With our evidence-based strategy, HHS is working to support local communities in fighting back against substance abuse, and our united efforts are yielding results. Together, we can end our country’s opioid crisis and lay a foundation for a healthier country where every American can access the mental healthcare they need.”
In addition to HRSA’s investments in community health centers, HRSA’s Federal Office of Rural Health Policy is awarding more than $111 million to 96 rural organizations across 37 states as part of its Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP) initiative. Pennsylvania will receive $5,725,000.
These funds, which also include an evaluation of the initiative, will strengthen rural communities’ capacity to provide needed SUD prevention, treatment, and recovery services and build the evidence base for interventions that are effective in rural settings.
