Bills to define and regulate sober living housing, add funding for local peer-led support programs and better enforce healthcare parity laws are high priority for mental health stakeholders this session.
Some Georgia counties are being invited to get their share of Kroger’s $1.2 billion, multi-district settlement over the franchises participation in the opioid addiction crisis.
Hundreds of Native American tribes are getting money from lawsuit settlements with opioid companies. Some are investing the new funds in traditional healing practices to treat addiction.
When a person with substance use disorder needs immediate care due to withdrawal symptoms or mental health struggles, a behavioral health unit can help.
Residents in rural South Georgia are adamantly fighting a zoning request — a faith-based nonprofit called Redeemed Living wants to build cabins for men in addiction recovery on 23 acres of local farmland. But the neighbors don’t want them living next door.
New research shows drug overdose deaths continue to surge among Black Americans. For the first time since 1999, Black Americans are dying at a higher rate per capita than white Americans.
Narcan is the life-saving medication that can prevent death after an opioid overdose. Those deaths climbed 36% in Georgia during the first year of the pandemic, with rural communities hit harder than more urban areas.
Thursday on Political Rewind: William Cope Moyers has sought to help others struggling with addiction by telling the story of his road to recovery. Public health officials are also struggling to address a new surge in overdose deaths in the United States.
Starting treatment for addiction in the emergency room greatly improves the chances recovery will last, experts say. Cutting red tape, hiring advocates and Uber vouchers can all make a difference.
The Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Association is awarding nearly $600,000 in grant money to the Georgia Council on Substance Abuse. Part of the money will be used for the “Georgia Recovers” billboard campaign. GPB’s Ellen Eldridge reports on the council’s work to reduce stigma associated with substance use disorder.
Millions of Americans have been helped by substance abuse recovery programs, but there’s a little-known side industry to recovery that some say has taken advantage of people trying overcome addiction. Sober living homes, sometimes called halfway houses, are not regulated in Georgia, but they are potentially very profitable. GPB’s Ellen Eldridge reports on a recently passed bill aimed at gaining some control over the programs.
As the pandemic stretches on more people are struggling with opioid use disorder. At an annual event highlighting addiction recovery, state leaders shared alarming statistics and their plans for helping Georgians through the opioid crisis.
As COVID-19 forced many addiction treatment clinics to scale back, Colorado brought its clinics on wheels to remote, underserved towns and used telehealth to connect patients with addiction doctors.
