Grantee Projects

The City of Holyoke Police Department (HPD) applied for Category 1c rural/tribal area grant funding in the amount of $597,650. Project ERASE (Expansion of Recovery from Addiction to Substances Efforts) will implement a multicomponent intervention program designed to (1) support individuals with opioid, stimulant, and other illicit substance issues with interventions to reduce addictions and associated mental health needs, (2) reduce overdoses and overdose deaths through prevention and intervention strategies, and (3) reduce substance-related crime in Holyoke. This project serves Behavioral Health Network and Gandara, the Holyoke Police Department, Hampden County Sheriff, Holyoke Probation, and research partners. The project includes partnerships between the House of Corrections to provide detox treatment options and develop a law enforcement liaison between HPD, the courts, and probation personnel. Priority considerations addressed in this application include a high-poverty area and enhanced public safety in Qualified Opportunity Zones.

Newburyport Police Department (NPD) in Massachusetts, one of the founding departments of the Essex County Outreach Program, proposes to expand the outreach program to encompass all of Essex County. The Essex County Outreach Program is a series of stigma-free entry points to treatment on demand. The program supports nonarrest or early diversion program models that reach people before they enter the criminal justice system. The program supports multiple law enforcement entry points to treatment, including self-referrals to the stations. Cross-sector collaboration and partnerships are key to the program’s success which is supported by clinicians, social workers, recovery coaches, and trained volunteers.

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Sheriff’s Department Hampden applied for a Category 1b suburban area grant in the amount of $900,000. Hampden County Sheriff’s Department’s All Inclusive Support Service Program will reduce opioid-related overdoses and related fatalities. The program will take a multipronged approach to (1) enhance a database in Hampden County that will allow for the collection, analysis, and dissemination of comprehensive, real-time overdose information, and (2) implement a law enforcement, first responder-driven multidisciplinary overdose prevention, response, and diversion referral model known as the Rapid Response and Connection Program. This project serves Hampden County, Massachusetts, which has a population of 470,406. The project includes partnerships between the Hampden County Sheriff’s Department, Office of the District Attorney, Baystate Medical Center, Trinity Health Mercy Medical Center, local law enforcement entities, and other established community partners. Priority considerations addressed in project include the disproportionate impact from substance use on a rural, high-poverty census tract and public safety impact in Qualified Opportunity Zones.

The Franklin County Sheriff’s Department applied for Category 1c rural/tribal area grant funding in the amount of $600,000. The Community Opportunity, Network, Navigation, Exploration, and Connection Team (CONNECT) will provide real-time assistance to individuals who survived, witnessed, or are at risk of an opioid overdose (e.g., family, family drug court participants, children, and community members). Team members will make in-person follow-up visits within 72 hours to individuals who survived or witnessed an opioid overdose, including affected children, to assess health, behavioral, and social needs. In addition, team members will connect individuals to community-based behavioral health, treatment, and recovery support services, while ensuring that opioid overdose survivors and witnesses navigate care across the criminal justice, human services, and educational systems. The program will expand Naloxone availability and appropriate use by first responders and law enforcement personnel, focusing on Naloxone deserts, and establish a system that offers real-time data collection, analysis, and dissemination of key data points to reduce opioid-related deaths. This project serves 87,130 residents in 30 communities spanning two rural counties in Western Massachusetts. The project includes partnerships between research scientists Pamela Kelley and Dr. Sean Varano and other community stakeholders representing law enforcement, the peer recovery community, harm reduction, courts, housing, and other basic human needs sectors.

The Trial Court of Massachusetts, on behalf of six states (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont), will establish a New England Regional Judicial Opioid Initiative (RJOI). This project will support comprehensive cross-system planning and collaboration among officials who work in multiple justice and justice related settings while staying focused on the judiciary and judiciary stakeholders (e.g. law enforcement, pre-trial services, the courts, probation and parole, child welfare, reentry, prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs), and emergency medical services, as well as health-care providers, public health partners, and agencies that provide substance use disorder treatment and recovery support services). The New England RJOI will also develop and enhance public safety, behavioral health, and public health information-sharing partnerships that leverage key public health and public safety data sets and implement interventions based on this information. The project will have a researcher and is presently completing contract negotiations for these services.

The Seekonk Police Department is applying for Category 1 funding in the amount of $798,156. The Bristol County Outreach Opioid Intervention/Mental Health Program is a law enforcement-led post-overdose outreach collaboration among eight towns in Bristol County that will facilitate access to treatment for individuals struggling with substance use disorder, as well as support for their families and friends. The program includes hiring a project coordinator/clinician and a recovery specialist to support the eight-town coalition of police departments in their efforts to provide post overdose/referral recovery support services to individuals experiencing non-fatal overdoses and those determined to be at risk for overdose. Outreach teams will conduct post-overdose home visits within 72 hours of an overdose to offer access to treatment. Outreach will also include distribution of harm reduction tool kits including naloxone. All eight towns currently use countywide overdose/referral tracking software called the Critical Incident Management System (CIMS), which tracks all fatal and non-fatal overdoses, shares data among law enforcement agencies, and documents post-overdose follow-up. The project serves the towns of Dighton, Easton, Fairhaven, Mansfield, Rehoboth, Seekonk, and Somerset in Bristol County, which have an aggregate population of 136,738. The project includes partnerships between the municipal police departments in Dighton, Easton, Fairhaven, Mansfield, Rehoboth, Seekonk, and Somerset. The project will engage Kelley Research Associates as a research partner. Priority considerations addressed in this application include a high rate of primary treatment admissions for heroin, opioids, and stimulants; high rates of overdose deaths; and a lack of accessibility to treatment providers and facilities.

The St. Mary’s County Health Department (SMCHD) is applying for a Category 1 award in the amount of $899,963. The St. Mary’s County Day Reporting Center project will provide community-based services and treatment to offenders under parole/probation in St. Mary’s County, Maryland. The offenders will live at home and report to the center on a daily basis. While at the center, the offenders receive various services including substance misuse counseling, anger management, moral reconation therapy, parenting skills, relapse prevention, mental health coordination, job skills, case management, educational classes, life skills, after-care planning, and touch-ups. This project serves a population of roughly 113,510 individuals in St. Mary's County. The project includes partnerships between SMCHD and St. Mary's County Detention and Rehabilitation Center (SMCDRC).

The Detroit Police Department’s Opioid Abuse Diversion Program will create and implement a law enforcement-led pre- and post-arrest diversion in Detroit using the Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) model. The School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University will serve as the research partner for the proposed project. The applicant agreed to provide data through the Overdose Detection Mapping Application Program (ODMAP).

The City of Duluth is applying for a Category 1 award in the amount of $899,982. The Substance Use Response Team of the City of Duluth Police Department’s Lake Superior Drug and Violent Crime Task Force (LSDVCTF) proposes a program model that would expand upon the services it currently provides, allow for the program to assist more individuals regardless of drug of choice, and shorten times between overdose events and contact from the team, thereby allowing for quicker access to treatment. This project serves the entire LSDVCTF region, which includes St. Louis, Carlton, and Lake Counties in Minnesota, as well as the city of Superior in Wisconsin. This entire region has a total population of 288,732. The project includes partnerships between St. Louis County Public Health and Human Services, St. Louis County Drug Court, the Center for Alcohol and Drug Treatment, and SOAR Career Solutions. This project will engage Dr. Jeff Maahs from the University of Minnesota Duluth as the research partner for this project. Priority considerations addressed in this application include services and referrals in designated Qualified Opportunity Zones.

The City of Duluth applied for Category 1b suburban area grant funding in the amount of $899,055. The City of Duluth FY 2020 COSSAP Lake Superior Diversion and Substance Use Response Team Project will improve community outreach to overdose events by expanding outreach efforts to those with amphetamine-related substance use disorders and those who experience amphetamine-related overdoses. The program will reduce barriers between outreach contact and treatment, and maintain or expand current opioid response functions. This project serves St. Louis, Carlton, and Lake counties in Minnesota, as well as the city of Superior in Wisconsin. This region has a population of approximately 289,727 people. The project includes partnerships between St. Louis County Public Health and Human Services, St. Louis County Drug Court, and the Center for Alcohol and Drug Treatment. Priority considerations addressed in this application include Qualified Opportunity Zones.

The Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS) will support the “Timely Treatment, Strengthened Service, and Effective Evaluation for Overdose Prevention: Linkage to Care Across Minnesota” project to achieve the following objectives in eight sites: • Reduce opioid misuse and opioid overdose death by supporting local efforts to implement effective opioid overdose prevention projects. • Support local efforts to implement treatment and recovery support linkage activities serving individuals vulnerable for drug overdose. • Support implementation of local multidisciplinary intervention models to bring together stakeholders with different perspectives and different information to identify drug overdose prevention strategies. • Enhance access to naloxone among people who use drugs to decrease overdose deaths. • Enhance successful local multidisciplinary overdose prevention activities to decrease overdose deaths. • Evaluate the extent to which additional funding to eight opioid overdose prevention projects, referred to as “Tackling Opioid Use With Networks (TOWN)”, impact the incidence of overdose in communities. • Create a TOWN Manual in collaboration with the communities to support the expansion and sustainability of the TOWN model. The eight sites will implement three evidence-based activities: (1) peer recovery specialists in emergency departments; (2) treatment linkage by emergency medical services; and (3) overdose fatality review teams. The project will also enhance six Minnesota Department of Public Safety-funded syringe services programs by providing each site with naloxone to distribute to participants who use opioids. Dr. Catherine Diamond from the Minnesota Department of Health will lead the project evaluation.

The Henderson County Health Department, through the County of Henderson, applied for Category 1b grant funding in the amount of $900,000. The funds will be used to expand access to recovery support services. The program seeks to provide peer-delivered services with a focus on rehabilitation and recovery, utilizing North Carolina certified peer support specialists and care coordinators. Services provided by the certified peers include psychosocial rehabilitation, habilitation, family support and training, short-term crisis intervention, and empowerment. This project serves a suburban area or medium-sized county with a population between 100,000 and 500,000. The project includes partnerships between Henderson County’s Behavioral Health Summit, Free Clinix, and Hope RX.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Abuse Services (NC DHHS) will implement evidence-based strategies to reduce the rate of opioid overdose associated with individuals involved in the local justice system. NC DHHS will competitively subaward nine sites to implement pre-arrest diversion programs, jail-based overdose prevention education and naloxone upon release, jail-based medication assisted treatment, and connections to care upon release. Six sites will be new projects and three sites will involve expanding or enhancing existing projects. The state will collaborate with Dr. Lauren Brinkley-Rubinstein from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Department of Social Medicine as the research partner for the project.

The City of Bismarck is applying for Category 1 funding in the amount of $900,000. Supporting First Responders Through Behavioral Health Interventions, Medication Assisted Treatment, and Connections to Care in the Emergency Department, a multidisciplinary overdose prevention, response, and referral model led by first responders, will serve as a bridge to intervene with overdose victims to transition them to medication-assisted treatment (MAT) and substance use disorder (SUD) treatment. Bismarck Police Department will partner with Heartview Foundation, a licensed addiction treatment provider, and Sanford Health Emergency Department to increase utilization of MAT for individuals with opioid use disorder; utilize recovery support services in the Sanford Emergency Department (ED) to develop a bridge between emergency room, law enforcement/first responders, and individuals needing treatment; and increase the availability of naloxone. The project will also increase communication efforts to reduce stigma surrounding SUDs, opioid use disorders (OUDs), and MAT. Deliverables include interventions with 90 individuals who have experienced an opioid overdose, as well as an additional 80 patients referred from the Opioid Overdose Bridge. Sanford Health ED will train ten medical professionals and twelve support staff members on SUD, MAT, and procedures for the Opioid Overdose Bridge. The project serves the Bismarck-Mandan Metropolitan Area in North Dakota, with an estimated population of 126,990. The project includes partnerships with the Bismarck, Mandan, and Lincoln Police Departments, the Burleigh and Morton County Sheriff’s Departments, Bismarck-Burleigh Public Health, Custer Health, Sanford Health Emergency Department, Ministry on the Margins, and Heartview Foundation. The project will engage Dr. Erin Winstanley, Vice Chair of Research, Department of Behavioral Medicine & Psychiatry at West Virginia University School of Medicine, as an evaluation partner. Priority considerations addressed in this application include a high rate of primary treatment admissions for heroin, opioids, and stimulants; high rates of overdose deaths; and a lack of accessibility to treatment providers and facilities.

The New Hampshire Department of Justice (DOJ) is applying for Category 2 funding in the amount of $4,710,993. The project will enable the expansion of the Prevention, Enforcement, & Treatment (PET) Program, which is designed to help lower recidivism rates of overdose victims and provide support to families of those struggling with substance use disorders (SUDs) by tasking a police officer to respond to overdose calls in a jurisdiction and to connect individuals and their family members to lifesaving resources. The project will expand PET from Laconia to six other counties across the state in partnership with Amoskeag Health, a nonprofit health care provider who, along with the Manchester Adverse Childhood Experiences Response Team Technical Assistance Center (ACERT TAC) will enable a multigenerational approach to SUD. The ACERT TAC will provide training and resources for the communities to ensure their networks of programs and services are trauma-informed. The project will integrate PET and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) into the first responders’ curriculum when responding to calls related to drug use. PET will offer a core of services to the families of individuals with SUD while identifying and utilizing resources from Manchester ACERT TAC to address the ACEs in children. The project serves the State of New Hampshire, which has an estimated population of 1,377,529. It will focus on the jurisdictions of Laconia, Belmont, Berlin, Claremont, Londonderry, Manchester, and Merrimack. The project will include partnerships between the New Hampshire DOJ and the Belmont Police Department, the Berlin Police Department, the Claremont Police Department, the Laconia Police Department, the Londonderry Police Department, the Manchester Police Department, the Merrimack Police Department, and Amoskeag Health. Priority considerations addressed in this application include a high rate of primary treatment admissions for heroin, opioids, and stimulants; high rates of overdose deaths; and a lack of accessibility to treatment providers and facilities.

Atlantic City is applying for Category 1 funding in the amount of $600,000. The Atlantic City COSSAP program will focus on promoting public safety and supporting access to recovery services, strengthening data collection and sharing, aligning and maximizing resources, and preventing substance use. It will implement a comprehensive plan to reduce the risk of overdose death and enhance treatment and recovery engagement through recommendations made by the city’s overdose fatality review team, bringing together stakeholders with different perspectives and different data sets to improve public health and clinical practices. Strategies include enhanced outreach to overdose survivors and their families and enhanced targeting of high-frequency cases. Goals of the project include reducing the impact of opioids, stimulants, and other substances on individuals and communities, reducing the number of overdose fatalities, and mitigating the impacts on crime victims by supporting comprehensive, collaborative initiatives, in part by enhancing the proactive use of prescription drug monitoring programs to support clinical decision making and preventing the misuse and diversion of controlled substances. The project serves Atlantic City, which has a population of 37,999. The project includes partnerships with the city’s Director of Public Health, the Jewish Family Services Department, Southern Jersey Family Medical Center, AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center Behavioral Health, the Atlantic City Police Department, the Atlantic City Municipal Court, and emergency medical services. Priority considerations addressed in this application include a high rate of primary treatment admissions for heroin, opioids, and stimulants; high rates of overdose deaths; and a lack of accessibility to treatment providers and facilities.

The City of Paterson, New Jersey, applied for Category 1b grant funding in the amount of $900,000. The Paterson Coalition for Opioid Assessment and Response (COAR) will support initiatives led by the City's inaugural Opioid Response Team (ORT), staffed by specially-trained law enforcement, emergency medical technicians, social workers, and peer recovery support workers. The ORT functions as the COAR's ground force by which to perform proactive outreach on a group and personalized basis with residents in “hot spot” areas, as identified based on the collective data and research of COAR. The program works closely with the adjacent Overdose Fatality Review Team to better analyze and understand overdose cases and trends, allowing COAR to identify additional gaps in services or policies that would potentially minimize its high rate of overdoses. Also, the program provides to hire staff needed to build the capacity and sustainability of COAR over time, as well as support the proposed activities. This project serves the City of Paterson, which has a population of ~160,000 residents. This effort involves partnerships between law enforcement entities from the local (Paterson Police Department), county (Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office), and interstate/federal (New York/New Jersey High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area) levels; addiction and health professionals from local (Paterson Department of Health and Human Services/Division of Health), county (Passaic County Department of Health and Human Services/Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services), and regional (St. Joseph’s University Medical Center) levels; community-based partners who work hands-on to develop policy (Health Coalition of Passaic County) and programs to support the region’s substance-using residents; and traditional Narcan distributors (Paterson Fire Department and Paterson Emergency Medical Services). Priority considerations addressed in this application include: addressing needs in high-poverty areas; supporting law enforcement in Qualified Opportunity Zones; and addressing areas with a high rate of primary treatment admissions for heroin/opioids, high rates of overdose deaths, and a lack of accessibility to treatment providers.

The County of Cumberland (Inc) is applying for Category 1 funding in the amount of $900,000. Fighting Relapse Effort Employing Drug Offense Monitoring Plus (FREEDOM+) is a collaborative diversionary program that will offer treatment and key peer recovery supports as a critical intervention that interrupts perpetuated criminal behavior. Additional harm reduction, prevention, and intervention efforts like Narcan distribution and education, fentanyl test strips, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's National Drug Take Back Initiative, and integrating Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) and Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (PAARI) programs are the "plus" part of this project to support community members fighting to be substance free. The FREEDOM+ program aims to drive those caught in the cycle of relapse and drug-seeking behavior toward treatment on threat of legal consequence, while setting up the participant for success with compassionate peer recovery support services. This project serves an estimated 600 defendants who will be offered, through their defense counsel, an opportunity to participate in FREEDOM+, with hopes that the offered opportunity and supports will motivate as many as 50 percent of participants to remain compliant into sustained recovery. The project includes partnerships with the Cumberland County Department of Human Services (CCDHS), which is a primary partner in implementing FREEDOM+, and its substance misuse programs. CCDHS operates a state licensed treatment facility where they will administer Comprehensive Drug and Alcohol Evaluations and provide a quality, evidenced-based, multi-faceted approach to address substance use problems for individuals and families. CCDHS also operates the Capital Recovery Center, which will be instrumental in managing the progress of defendants participating in FREEDOM+ and providing holistic peer recovery supports. This project will engage Rutgers University’s Walter Rand Institute (WRI) as evaluator. FREEDOM+ advances the U.S. Department of Justice priorities in three ways: by increasing access to justice, protecting the public from crime and evolving threats, and building trust between law enforcement and the community. In addition, Cumberland County meets the Office of Justice Programs priority of being a high-poverty area.

The New Jersey State Parole Board (NJSPB) is applying for a Category 2 award in the amount of $3,278,813. The FY 2021 COSSAP-New Jersey State Parole Board project will provide peer recovery-based services to individuals with substance use disorder who are under parole supervision, as well as expand Rutgers University’s current Intensive Recovery Treatment Support (IRTS) program and create a team of providers specifically dedicated to the needs of individuals under NJSPB supervision. The target population to be served under this grant will be a minimum of 110 adult offenders released from New Jersey state correctional facilities to parole supervision residing in any one of New Jersey’s 21 counties. Medium-to-high-risk offenders will be identified prior to their release from prison and will be referred, when released on parole, to receive IRTS services with the aid of a Peer Health Navigator. The project includes a partnership with Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care. Priority considerations addressed in this application include protecting the public from crime and evolving threats, building trust between law enforcement and the community, and serving individuals residing in high-poverty areas.

The New Mexico Human Services Department applied for Category 2 statewide area grant funding in the amount of $6,000,000. The implementation and enhancement of Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) programs in New Mexico will reduce criminal behavior, decrease criminal justice and emergency health service utilization, and improve public safety by supporting the development of LEAD in tribal and nontribal jurisdictions. The project aims to reduce drug overdose and improve the quality of life for people with a substance use disorder while supporting a coordinated collaborative response to behavioral health among criminal justice, social service, and public health systems. This project serves approximately 900,000 residents in New Mexico. The project includes partnerships between Bernalillo County, Santa Fe County, Taos County, Lea County, San Juan County and San Miguel County. Priority considerations addressed in this application include the high rate of individuals in New Mexico jails and prisons estimated to have an untreated substance use disorder and the high rates of racial disparity in corrections.

Sierra County in New Mexico will develop a crisis intervention team to assist law enforcement officers in developing a law enforcement diversion program, provide jail-based opioid and behavioral health services, provide skill-building and treatment, assist incarcerated individuals transitioning to community-based services once released from custody, add community behavior health treatment planning and services, and conduct opioid education programs in schools. This project will engage Ann Hays Egan of New Ventures Consulting as the research partner for this project.

The City of Ithaca applied for Category 1b suburban area grant funding in the amount of $900,000. The Ithaca LEAD Program (ILP) will reduce repeated arrests and incarceration for people whose unlawful conduct stems from unmet behavioral health needs in the city of Ithaca and adjacent towns in Tompkins County, New York. ILP will reduce racial disparities in criminal justice involvement for the region’s African-American population, reduce unnecessary arrests and prosecutions imposed on the justice system, improve officer efficiency, maximize the value of the city’s community-based service array, and improve outcomes for this complex population. In the era of COVID-19, these changes are especially critical. Across the nation, officers are confronting new challenges in interacting with people on the street; jails are striving to reduce incarceration so as to mitigate COVID-19 risks; and judges, attorneys, and court staff are seeking to reduce congestion in courtrooms. This project serves the city of Ithaca, New York. The project includes partnerships with Tompkins County District Attorney and Legislature, Community Leadership Team DCI, Ithaca Police Department, Tompkins County Sheriff, REACH Medical, Greater Ithaca Activities Center, and the LEAD National Support Bureau. Priority considerations addressed in this application include Qualified Opportunity Zones, as well as challenges faced by rural communities and high-poverty areas.

Ulster County is applying for Category 1b suburban area grant funding in the amount of $900,000. The High-Risk Mitigation Team (HRMT) will increase ORACLE’s capacity to respond to overdose scenes by providing crisis intervention training (CIT) to officers throughout Ulster County. The project will develop the HRMT to work directly with ORACLE, providing certified peer advocate services (CRPA) and intensive case management within the city of Kingston, New York. The project will also develop an initial alert system for first responders in Kingston to alert the ORACLE team of overdose when it happens. This project serves Ulster County, a community of approximately 177,573 people. The project includes partnerships between the Ulster County Department of Health and Mental Health, Ulster County Sheriff’s Office, and ORACLE team. Priority considerations addressed in this application include a high rate of primary treatment admissions for heroin or other opioids and a high rate of overdose deaths.

The New York State Unified Court System (UCS) is applying for Category 2 funding in the amount of $5,783,403. The New York Rural Opioid Court Initiative will implement opioid courts (OICs)—pre-plea court programs that expedite treatment and recovery services for offenders at high risk for overdose—in eight USDA-designated rural counties in New York State (Sullivan, Greene, Delaware, Genesee, Cortland, Columbia, Chenango, and Lewis). The project provides the infrastructure, planning, and evaluation of evidence-based treatment interventions, supervision, and recovery supportive services to successfully divert defendants with substance use disorder at risk of overdose. The OICs’ development will be supported locally by engaging in Sequential Intercept Model mapping in each jurisdiction and by the establishment of an OIC Center of Excellence, which will provide guidance to the selected counties in applying best practices to address the issues of polysubstance use disorders, mental health, and trauma. The project will also improve court supervision and access to treatment and peers through teleservices and will engage with drug testing laboratories to enhance testing for complex synthetic drugs to target effective supervision, treatment, and supportive services. The goal of the project is to stabilize defendants while an appropriate disposition of their case is determined so that participants may connect with treatment and other services that produce behavior change. The project serves Sullivan, Greene, Delaware, Genesee, Cortland, Columbia, Chenango, and Lewis counties in New York State, with a combined population of 408,060. The project includes partnerships with the New York Office of Addiction Services and Supports and Policy Research Associates. The project will engage NPC Research as an evaluation partner. Priority considerations addressed in this application include a high rate of primary treatment admissions for heroin, opioids, and stimulants; high rates of overdose deaths; and a lack of accessibility to treatment providers and facilities.

Butler County of Ohio applied for Category 1B grant funding in the amount of $900,000. The Butler County COSSAP project aims to reduce the impact of opioids, stimulants, and other substances on individuals within its communities, through reducing the number of overdose fatalities, as well as mitigating the impacts of on crime victims by supporting comprehensive, collaborative initiatives. This project serves Butler County, home to a population of 382,000. The project includes a partnership with Miami University’s Center for School-based Mental Health Programs. Priority considerations addressed in this application include rural challenges in a high-poverty area and Qualified Opportunity Zone.

The City of Columbus Department of Public Safety applied for grant funding in the amount of $1200,000 under Category 1A. This project serves the 1,316,756 residents of the city of Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio. The Rapid Response Emergency Addiction Crisis Team (RREACT) EMS Outreach Unit is a unit within the Division of Fire’s Training and Emergency Medical Services Bureau and is supported by the Division of Police’s Crisis Response Team. RREACT EMS outreach members include firefighters/paramedics, Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) certified peace officers, a substance use case manager, a registered SUD nurse, a family case manager, and trauma specialist. This multidisciplinary outreach team goes directly into communities to connect with opioid users who survive overdose, but then refuse EMS transport to the emergency room. The goal of the outreach unit is to proactively create connections and build relationships with opioid users. RREACT follows up with addicted individuals in the community within 48 hours of nonfatal overdose; checks in on their immediate health and wellness; provides resource information, and creates opportunities for users to link with harm-reduction supplies, treatment programs, and social service supports. RREACT actively partners with local treatment providers, public health departments, justice agencies, and Franklin County’s Family and Children First Council to achieve desired project outcomes. Gretchen Hammond with Mighty Crow, Inc. serves as the evaluator for the proposed project. The applicant is eligible for COSSAP priority consideration based on overdose rates in Franklin County and the City of Columbus and the project’s impact on increased public safety in Qualified Opportunity Zones.

Erie County will develop the Drug Overdose Response Team (DORT). DORT will be available 24/7 to respond on scene to calls about drug overdoses whenever first responders are involved, provide short-term case management, and conduct intensive follow up. DORT will serve the geographic area of Erie County with a population just under 75,000. This project includes partnerships with the Erie County Sheriff’s Office and Erie County Prosecutor’s Office.

Franklin County, Ohio, applied for grant funding under Category 1A in the amount of $1,200,000. This project will serve individuals incarcerated at the Franklin County Jail and screened as at-risk for substance use dependency and drug-related overdose. The purpose of the project is to (a) reduce drug-related overdoses and deaths, (b) increase peer support and treatment referral and linkage, (c) increase access to medication-assisted treatment pre- and post-release, and (d) decrease recidivism. The Fast Track to Treatment initiative includes partnerships with the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Franklin County Municipal Court, Southeast Inc., Alvis180, and PrimaryOne Health. Priority considerations addressed in this application include a program model that focuses services in a county with a demonstrated disproportionate number of drug overdose deaths (43.3 overdoses per 100,000 as compared to the U.S. rate of 20.7 overdose deaths per 100,000) and program implementation intended to improve public safety by targeting services in federally designated Qualified Opportunity Zones. Dr. Gretchen Clark-Hammond, CEO of Mighty Crow, shall serve as program evaluator for the proposed project.

The Lucas County Sheriff’s Office Community Advocates Outreach Project (CAOP), a division of the Drug Abuse Response Team (DART), applied under Category 1B for three-year total grant funding in the amount of $231,232 to serve 441,815 residents of Lucas County, Ohio. Federal funding will assist program expansion, which will reduce the demand of opioids, reduce the supply of opioids, and promote harm-reduction. The project will achieve these goals through (1) development, promotion, and implementation of a three-year mixed-media drug awareness campaign; and (2) the evaluation of the CAOP educational component of DART. The project includes partnerships with Arrowhead Behavioral Health, Boys and Girls Club of Toledo, Brightside Academy, Glass City Academy, Maumee Indoor Theater, the Mental Health and Recovery Services Board of Lucas County, St. Francis De Sales School, Toledo Public Schools, and UMADAOP Lucas County. Priority consideration addressed in this application is for a high-poverty area.

The Ohio Office of Criminal Justice Services (OCJS) applied under Category 2 on behalf of the State of Ohio for grant funding in the amount of $6,000,000 for the First Responder Diversion Programs in Ohio project. Through this grant, first responder diversion (FRD) programs will be created and/or expanded in rural and urban areas across Ohio. The project serves Cuyahoga, Fairfield, Franklin, Hamilton, Lawrence, Lorain, and Mansfield counties. Federally designated Qualified Opportunity Zones and high-poverty areas were a consideration in identifying several of the pilot sites. The project partners include OCJS, Cordata, Talbert House, the University of Cincinnati, and drug task forces in participating FRD sites.

The Muscogee Creek Nation Department of Health (MCNDH) is applying for Category 1 funding in the amount of $600,000. The MCNDH COSSAP Program will work across Muscogee Creek Nation (MCN) tribal programs to identify adult citizens who are at risk or suffering from opioid use disorder (OUD); train law enforcement officers, emergency management personnel, and rural volunteer firefighters throughout the MCN reservation; and expand treatment for patients. MCNDH will partner with the MCN Lighthorse Police Department (LHP) to administer the grant. The project will hire a project coordinator and a client navigator to establish a relationship with a medication-assisted treatment provider; provide annual professional training to all providers at all tribal health clinics; review and update policies and procedures on opioid treatment and administration; and review the process to identify, screen, assess, and refer OUD patients. The project will also purchase 300 naloxone kits to provide to law enforcement officers, emergency management personnel, and rural volunteer firefighters upon completion of naloxone administration training; purchase two 38-gallon drug disposal bins to be placed at two locations within the reservation for disposal of unwanted, unused, or expired controlled substances; and purchase 2,500 drug disposal system pouches. The project aims to provide case management and peer support for at least 100 patients; training for 300 law enforcement officers, emergency management personnel, and rural volunteer firefighters throughout the MCN reservation on how to identify an opioid overdose and how to administer naloxone; and training for 500 MCNDH staff, law enforcement officers, emergency management personnel, and rural volunteer firefighters to identify patients for potential OUD. The project serves the Muscogee Creek Nation, which has a population of 91,053 across 11 counties in east-central Oklahoma. The project includes partnerships between MCNDH, LHP, the MCN’s Social Services Program, the Indian Child Welfare Program, and the Family Violence Prevention Program. Priority considerations addressed in this application include a high rate of primary treatment admissions for heroin, opioids, and stimulants; high rates of overdose deaths; and a lack of accessibility to treatment providers and facilities.

Allegheny County applied for grant funding under Category 1a in the amount of $1,199,505 to build needed pre-arrest/pre-booking diversion pathways to harm-reduction services for individuals with SUD/COD — leveraging Allegheny County Department of Human Services’ (DHS) Pathway to Care and Recovery, the county’s new front door to treatment and support, as well as other crisis system resources. This project will support diversion from the criminal justice system at two crucial points: (1) pre-arrest, so that police officers can divert individuals to the Engagement Center, avoiding arrest and incarceration entirely; and (2) pre-booking, so that magisterial district judges can divert individuals from getting booked in the jail during their initial bail hearing. This project will also build upon planning efforts with various suburban municipalities who have expressed interest in teaming together to establish flexible options for pre-arrest diversion to mobile case managers Allegheny County’s proposed project for COSSAP addresses the high-poverty area and Qualified Opportunity Zone priority considerations, as it is intended to benefit individuals who reside in these areas and will improve public safety.

The City of Woonsocket Police Department is applying for a Category 1, Subcategory 1b award in the amount of $819,109. The Woonsocket LEADER in Treatment Program will implement the Law Enforcement Assisted Deflection, Engagement, and Retention (LEADER) in Treatment program. The LEADER in Treatment program will divert individuals with a substance use disorder or co-occurring disorders before formally entering the criminal justice system at the post-arrest/pre-prosecution stage.  The service area for this program is regional.  The program will be based out of the city of Woonsocket, although the program will also serve residents of Lincoln (population 21,105), Cumberland (population 35,263), North Smithfield (population 12,582), Pawtucket (population 72,117), Central Falls (population 19,568), and Providence (population 179,194) who are routinely arrested by the Woonsocket Police Department due to geographic proximity. The project includes partnerships between Community Care Alliance. This project will engage Rulo Strategies LLC, which will partner with researchers from Brown University as the research partner for this project. Priority considerations addressed in this application include that Woonsocket has been disproportionately impacted by the opioid crisis and is a community with a high rate of poverty.

The City of Charleston is applying for Category 1 funding in the amount of $900,000. The Charleston County Addiction Crisis Task Force Police Assisted Peer Recovery Program, a law enforcement diversion program that will fund three positions: one project coordinator to provide data collection and analysis services to all law enforcement agencies in Charleston County and two peer support specialists to support law enforcement officers while conducting outreach. The project will also expand Charleston’s existing partnership with the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (PAARI) to include officer training, oversight of peer support specialists, and the design of multimedia products to inform officers and the community of this outreach initiative. The project will fund Critical Incident Management Software (CIMS) to facilitate communication between police-based outreach programs and treatment facilities to track follow-up success, with support from Kelley Research Associates (KRA) and ODMAP to facilitate real-time overdose follow-up communication across the county. The peer support specialists will deploy with trained QRT officers for the purpose of engaging individuals who recently suffered an overdose or presented signs of a substance use disorder during an interaction with law enforcement. They will be responsible for developing recovery plans to support overdose survivors as they transition to treatment. Harm reduction kits that include fentanyl test strips, clean injection equipment, naloxone, gloves, and information on local resources so that overdose deaths and other negative health outcomes associated with drug use can be reduced will be made available to survivors and at other locations. The goal of the project is to achieve a 15 percent reduction in the number of days from overdose to outreach. The project serves the City of Charleston, which is the nexus of the Charleston-North Charleston-Summerville Metropolitan Statistical Area and has a population estimated at 713,000, with an estimated 411,000 in Charleston County. The project includes partnerships with the Charleston Police Department, the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office, the North Charleston Police Department, and the Mt. Pleasant Police Department, all of which have officers serving on the Charleston County Addiction Crisis Task Force (ACT Force). The project will engage Kelley Research Associates to implement the CIMS and to evaluate the program. Priority considerations addressed in this application include a high rate of primary treatment admissions for heroin, opioids, and stimulants; high rates of overdose deaths; and a lack of accessibility to treatment providers and facilities. The project will also benefit individuals residing in high-poverty areas.

The entire county of Lancaster is 98,012 residents. The proposed project will provide resources for training of every law enforcement officer in the county on LEAD (Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion); promote visible prescription drug takeback strategies; and assist with training, handling, and distribution of naloxone. Priority considerations include the presence of a Qualified Opportunity Zone, poverty, and rural challenges. This application is for Category 1c grant funding.

The Gallatin Police Department (Sumner County, Tennessee, population 191,283) — in partnership with the Sumner County Sheriff’s Office, local treatment provider Volunteer Behavioral Health, local courts, and scientific consultants — requests $892,085 from the Bureau of Justice Assistance FY 2020 Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant, and Substance Abuse Site-based Program (Category 1b: Competition ID BJA-2020-17024) to implement a law enforcement-led substance abuse response to address the county’s increasing substance abuse problem. The proposed community-based strategy to address substance abuse and overdose risk will be implemented through enhancing connections to treatment; delivering evidence-based recovery services including needs assessment, individualized treatment plans, case management, medicated assisted treatment (MAT); providing a police-led awareness and prevention program to the county’s K-12 population, as well as a provision of Narcan to officer first responders. OJP priorities addressed include serving a designated Qualified Opportunity Zone, high-poverty areas, evidence-based services delivery, and program evaluation.

The Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services is applying for category 2 in the amount of $6,000,000. This project will increase local community’s capacity to respond to the presence of Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) among justice involved individuals and reduce the impact of SUDs among justice involved individuals. This project will include partnerships with the Tennessee Department of Health to support the expansion of Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) in COSSAP jail sites and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation to support Drug Endangered Children Task Forces, Field Based Drug Testing, and overdose data mapping. This project serves to support ten new implementation project sites; 1) Blount, 2) Roane, 3) Anderson, 4) Bradley, 5) Dickson, 6) Cheatham, 7) Roane, 8) Tipton, 9) Grundy and 10) Montgomery counties. Priority Considerations: Qualified Opportunity Zones: All 10 sites targeted for this COSSAP project have Qualified Opportunity Zones in their county: See Attachment 6. High-Poverty Areas or Persistent-Poverty Counties: Two of the targeted counties: Grundy and Cocke are rated by the TN Dept of Economic and Community Development as “Distressed”, while the other eight (8) counties are rated as “Transitional”. Poverty rates for all targeted counties are above the national average (12.3%) with Grundy (28.5%), Cocke (25.0%) and Bradley (18.0%) all exceeding the Statewide poverty rate of 16.7%. Address Specific Challenges That Rural Communities Face: Six of the ten sites selected have more than (50%) of their population residing in rural areas, which Grundy County having (100%) of its population residing in a rural area.

The Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office for the County of Augusta, Virginia, applied for grant funding in the amount of $600,000. This project serves Augusta County, a small, semi-rural county with the population of 74,701. The purpose of the project is to expand its currently existing LEAD program to serve the expanding number persons with substance use disorder. The grant will fund a new case management program, which will connect higher-risk, felony-level offenders with community resources prior to them being charged. The program will also institute a new transfer project, which will give medical professionals and first responders the ability to ensure continuity of care for clients presenting with SUD. The project includes partnerships between Augusta County Sherriff’s Department, Blue Ridge Court Services, Valley Community Services Board, Blue Ridge Criminal Justice Board, and the Institute for Reform and Solutions. Priority considerations addressed in this application include rural designation for part of the County of Augusta in seven of its census tracts.

Chesterfield County Sheriff’s Office is applying for grant funding in the amount of $1,192,430. This project serves the metro Richmond area with a population of over 500,000 and is submitted under Subcategory 1a. The purpose of the project is to provide specialized pretrial supervision to individuals at high risk for overdose and expand reentry planning and medication-assisted treatment to inmates. The project includes partnerships between the Chesterfield County Sheriff’s Office, Chesterfield Community Corrections Services, Chesterfield Mental Health Supportive Services, other local agencies and a local evaluator. Priority considerations addressed in this application include providing services to Qualified Opportunity Zones, addressing persistent poverty, and serving a region that has been disproportionately impacted by substance abuse.

The City of West Allis Fire Department (WAFD) is applying for Category 1 funding in the amount of $900,000. The Mobile Integrated Health MAT Access Advocate Program (MAAP) will expand the range and capability of the West Allis Fire Department’s Mobile Integrated Health (MIH) team to facilitate MIH and medication-assisted treatment (MAT) services to every Milwaukee County municipality, as well as support the development of training materials to allow for application of sustainable MIH practices across the entire county. WAFD’s MIH team pairs a community paramedic and a certified peer recovery support specialist who provide targeted outreach and facilitate new enrollments or reengagements to MAT services, reaching the opioid use disorder (OUD) population via either real-time, 24/7 response to overdose emergencies or visitation to patients referred to the program from local and regional partners. MAAP will connect with each participating municipality’s local framework to establish a referral process and connect the local effort to broader regional efforts. A local hospital will provide MAT (including buprenorphine induction), mental health screening with counseling, and warm handoffs to primary care and community MAT clinics. MAPP will educate police, fire, and health departments in all Milwaukee County suburbs on how they can adopt the West Allis OUD outreach practices. MAAP will also work with county stakeholders to ensure children impacted by substance misuse receive required services. The project serves Milwaukee County, which comprises 19 municipalities and has a population of 945,726. The project includes partnerships with the Medical College of Wisconsin, the Milwaukee County Assistant District Attorney, the Milwaukee County House of Corrections, the Milwaukee County Opioid Fatality Review team, the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office, the Milwaukee Fire Department Opioid Response Initiative, the Wisconsin Department of Health Service, and the Milwaukee County Office of Emergency Management. The project will engage Dr. Jennifer Hernandez-Meier of the Departments of Emergency Medicine and Psychiatry at the Medical College of Wisconsin as the primary research and evaluation partner. Priority considerations addressed in this application include a high rate of primary treatment admissions for heroin, opioids, and stimulants, high rates of overdose deaths, and a lack of accessibility to treatment providers and facilities.

The Winnebago County District Attorney’s Office (WCDAO) is applying for Category 1 funding in the amount of $1,897,863. Stimulant and Opioid Addiction Recovery (SOAR) will develop a diversion strategy using evidence-based components for people with substance use disorder (SUD) and felony drug-possession cases and will improve data infrastructure, engaging stakeholders that include local justice, health, and service agencies and community-based service providers. SOAR will operate in two phases, the first beginning with the defendant being arrested or summoned to an initial court appearance. Phase 1 includes a 24/7 drug-monitoring program; Phase 2 consists of a post-charge diversion agreement. The project will collaborate with a recovery-services and training facility in Winnebago County that will provide certified peer support specialists. A local pharmacy will provide naltrexone shots to participants who are interested in pursuing that path. Pragmatic field tests of process improvements will document performance and feasibility of implementation. The project’s goal is to identify and respond to the needs of persons with SUD who are currently excluded from diversion programs. Deliverables include improved data collection to characterize and respond to SUD; a screening tool for treatment and diversion for persons with SUD; and improvements in domains important to the justice system, social-service agencies, the community, and SUD-involved persons, such as increased treatment engagement and reduced recidivism. The project serves Winnebago County, a largely rural county with a population of approximately 170,000. The project includes partnerships between WCDAO and the Winnebago County Department of Human Services, the Winnebago County Department of Public Health, Options Lab, the Winnebago County Circuit Court, the Wisconsin State Public Defender’s Office, and Fox Valley Peer-based Response, Information, Support, and Maintenance. The project will engage the New York University's Marron Institute as a research partner. Priority considerations addressed in this application include a high rate of primary treatment admissions for heroin, opioids, and stimulants; high rates of overdose deaths; and a lack of accessibility to treatment providers and facilities.

The Wisconsin Department of Justice, in partnership with the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, will develop a comprehensive state plan that will assist the state and localities in engaging and retaining individuals in the justice system in diversion, treatment, and recovery services. This plan will identify training and technical assistance programs for localities aimed at improving treatment engagement and client outcomes; supporting the tracking, compiling, coordinating, and dissemination of statewide and local data; and expanding the collaborative efforts between state and local agencies. Funding is also provided to implement the plan once it is approved.

The Cheyenne Regional Medical Center proposes a pre-arrest law enforcement assisted diversion program (LEAD) program. The project will include a part-time coordinator and a full-time case manager who will hold primary responsibility for planning and implementation of LEAD and client case management. Project partners include Laramie County, Cheyenne Police Department, Laramie County Sheriff’s Office, Cheyenne Municipal Court, and treatment providers.