Funding Boosts Services Throughout Full Continuum of Prevention, Treatment, Harm Reduction, and Recovery System of Care
More than $33 Million in Settlement Funding Awarded for Housing, Prevention, and Workforce Development Initiatives
OASAS Providing More than $30 Million in State Funding to Increase Outreach and Engagement Services and Access to Medication for Addiction>
The New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS) today announced over $63 million in funding awards to support a wide range of initiatives to address the opioid and overdose crisis. This funding is bolstering efforts to increase access to housing, prevention and educational services, supporting workforce development, helping connect high-need individuals to services, and increasing access to all forms of medication for addiction. New York continues to take significant steps to expand substance use disorder services across the state. These ongoing initiatives have contributed to a 32% reduction in overdose death rates during the 12-month period ending in January of this year.
“Working with the Opioid Settlement Fund Advisory Board, we have been able to get this funding out quickly to the communities that need it most, as we continue our ongoing efforts to address the effects of the opioid and overdose crisis,” OASAS Commissioner Dr. Chinazo Cunningham said. “In addition, with new state funding, we are further expanding several successful initiatives that will help ensure that more New Yorkers are able to access the help and resources they need.”
Settlement Funding
More than $33 million in funding from the New York State Opioid Settlement Fund is being awarded to community-based providers across the state. These awards bolster efforts to increase access to housing, prevention and educational services, and also support workforce development. This funding is being distributed in accordance with the recommendations of the New York State Opioid Settlement Fund Advisory Board, which was formed to make recommendations on how settlement funding coming to the state should be spent.
New York State is receiving more than $2 billion through various settlement agreements with opioid manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies that were secured by Attorney General Letitia James. A portion of the funding from these settlements will go directly to municipalities, with the remainder deposited into a dedicated fund to support prevention, treatment, harm reduction and recovery efforts to address the ongoing opioid epidemic.
To date, OASAS has made more than $409 million available through the opioid settlement fund, which is the most of any state in the nation. This funding is supporting a variety of initiatives across the prevention, treatment, harm reduction, and recovery continuum of addiction care. Up-to-date information about spending through the OSF is available online.
Initiatives supported through this funding are detailed below:
- Transitional Safety Units: $21,278,140
This initiative is designed to help individuals with a substance use disorder who are experiencing homelessness find short-term housing, while they are waiting for a permanent housing solution. With this funding, providers will support the addition of peers to aid in the recovery of those in the housing units. This funding is being provided over four years to 16 providers across the state.
- Community Prevention and Intervention Project: $4,699,440
The Community Prevention and Intervention Project is designed to increase prevention services in underserved areas of the state. Providers receiving funding will implement and expand coordinated, evidence-based prevention services in these areas, addressing individuals, families, communities, and societal needs.
- Interdisciplinary Substance Use Disorder Fellowship Program: $2,892,338
The goal of this fellowship program is to strengthen the addiction services workforce by supporting addiction professionals through increased education, training, and work experience. Through this initiative, those in the program will have the opportunity to learn from experts in various fields, such as nursing and social work, and will participate in a comprehensive curriculum to receive hands-on experience.
- Wellness Initiative for Senior Education (WISE): $2,400,000
Eight providers are receiving $300,000 each to support the Wellness Initiative for Senior Education (WISE) program. This program provides educational services for older adults on things like medication management and misuse, stress management, depression, and substance use. Providers receiving funding are partnering with local programs and organizations that provide services and resources to adults in their community over 55 years old.
- Social Emotional Learning: $1,350,000
The Social Emotional Learning initiative is a prevention program implemented in schools, reaching students starting in Pre-K and running through high school. Providers receiving funding through this initiative provide training, materials, and support to school administrators, to support efforts to increase protective factors and reduce risk factors for substance use. This funding is being provided over the course of three years.
- Paid Prevention Internship Opportunity $1,104,000
The Paid Prevention Internship Opportunity is an effort to address workforce issues across the state by providing paid internships for individuals looking to enter the addiction services workforce. The program supports college-level and workforce-ready New Yorkers by providing them with entry level experience and education and training to support a career in the substance use disorder prevention field. Those receiving internships through this program will also receive training hours towards a Certified Prevention Professional (CPP) or Certified Prevention Specialist (CPS) credential.
Opioid Stewardship Funding
Through opioid stewardship funding, OASAS is awarding more than $30 million to support initiatives that help connect individuals identified as having high need to harm reduction, treatment, and other resources, as well as increase access to medication for addiction.
Initiatives supported through this funding are detailed below:
- Street Outreach: $23,923,724
Nearly $24 million is being awarded to 17 providers over the course of three years to increase street outreach services, including education, support, and linkages to care. This initiative is designed to reach people who use drugs and are not engaged in harm reduction or treatment services, and face barriers to care such as living far away from traditional treatment.
- Methadone for Opioid Use Disorder Treatment: $3,705,123
This is a two-year, targeted initiative to increase access to services for opioid use disorder (OUD) by assisting providers in establishing either a comprehensive outpatient program, or an opioid treatment program (OTP). Providers in counties identified as having high needs, including some with no existing methadone services, were targeted for this funding. This is part of ongoing efforts by OASAS to ensure every county has methadone services available, including though previous funding for comprehensive outpatient treatment programs, new OTPs, and mobile medication units. Medication for addiction, including methadone, is safe and effective and research has shown that it can help reduce overdose rates by more than 50%.
- Medication for Opioid Use Disorder for incarcerated individuals:$3,200,000
In order to increase access to medication for opioid use disorder in correctional settings, OASAS is awarding $3.2 million to providers across New York to help pay for buprenorphine and naltrexone. Criminal-justice involved individuals have a higher risk of overdose, and New York State has taken significant steps to ensure that people in correctional settings are able to more easily access medication for addiction. All jails and prisons in New York State currently offer all forms of FDA-approved addiction medication.
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