At its January 13 meeting, the Four County ADAMhs Board allocated some $944,000 of federal grant funds to three local providers to address issues related to opioid use.

Board CEO Rob Giesige explained that this is the second year that the board has received federal funds to help develop an integrated behavioral health approach to address opioid use by teens and adults.

OhioGuidestone doing business as A Renewed Mind Behavioral Health will receive $387,365 from the grant to establish an open access program for opioid users at their Napoleon office on Freedom Drive.

Persons needing help because of opioid use can simply show up at the office without an appointment and be seen by a behavioral health professional, such as a nurse practitioner or counselor.

Recovery Services of Northwest Ohio plans to use $372,650 to establish a partial hospitalization or day treatment program for clients with opioid issues at its Bryan office on Van Gundy Street.

And, Maumee Valley Guidance Center will receive $184,169 to provide Mental Health First Aid trainings for Defiance, Fulton, Henry and Williams county teenagers.

Although the four county opioid death rate is less than it is in Ohio’s urban and some rural southern and southeastern counties, the number of local opioid deaths has increased in the last two years from 21 in 2019 to 37 in 2020.

In another opioid-related matter, the board approved the addition of Jannsen to the One Ohio opioid settlement agreement.

The four county board is one of many entities that are part of Ohio’s class action lawsuit against various pharmaceutical distributors. The suit seeks payments from the companies to help cover the cost of treating opioid use and misuse in Ohio.

Last fall, the Four County ADAMhs Board approved the One Ohio settlement agreement with AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson Corporation.

As agreements are finalized and approved, the pharmaceutical companies begin to make annual payments to the One Ohio Foundation.

The four county board and other entities that are part of the lawsuit can apply for grants from the Foundation to fund opioid-related treatment programs for the next 18 years.

In other action, the board approved issuance of 120-day notices of contract changes or non-renewal to all service providers. This notice is given every year.

Recovery Services of Northwest Ohio will receive up to $302,596 in additional COVID 19 funds to assist with its alcohol treatment programs through March 15, 2023.

The board also allocated $5,000 to the Williams County Health Department as its share of the next Williams County health needs assessment.

Giesige also reported that the board has recently used a new way to raise public awareness about behavioral health topics.

Last month, the board placed two short ads on streaming platforms that targeted persons whose zip codes were from Defiance, Fulton, Henry or Williams counties as they watched movies, television shows and other programming on their devices.

One ad dealt with opioid use and the other was about suicide. The ads cost $390 and totaled nearly 19,000 hits with 85 percent of the viewers watching the entire ad.

Each ad ended with a message encouraging persons to seek help by calling the local help line – 800-468-4357.

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