Worcester, Wicomico Counties Score State Opioid Grants

BERLIN – Both Worcester and Wicomico counties are expected to benefit from state grants to combat the heroin and opioid epidemic in Maryland.

Last Thursday, Maryland’s Opioid Operational Command Center (OOCC), in coordination with the Maryland Emergency Management Agency, announced nearly $10 million in grant funding to combat the heroin and opioid epidemic in fiscal year 2020.

“Our administration continues to be committed to using every resource possible to ensure our local jurisdictions have access to life-saving resources such as programs aimed towards prevention, treatment, and recovery,” Governor Larry Hogan said in a statement last week. “These grants are a powerful tool for our local communities in our fight against the opioid epidemic.”

The funding is part of a $50 million, five-year commitment from the administration announced in 2017.

The funding provided in fiscal year 2020 includes more than $5.6 million in competitive grants and $4 million in block grants, which will be distributed to local Opioid Intervention Teams (OIT) for each jurisdiction to determine how best to fight the opioid epidemic.

In addition to funding for statewide programs, the competitive grant awards include $49,000 for the Worcester Goes Purple awareness campaign in Worcester County and $46,000 for peer-recovery support in Wicomico County. Worcester, Wicomico and Somerset counties also received $532,000 in grant funding to support a regional substance-use, crisis-stabilization center.

In addition to competitive grants, the Worcester County Opioid Intervention Team received $98,313 in block grants to support a peer-recovery specialist assignment in the hospital emergency room, while the Wicomico County Opioid Intervention Team received $117,288 to support OIT coordination, a heroin and opioid coordinator for the Wicomico County Goes Purple awareness campaign, a First Responder’s Appreciation Dinner, and an education and prevention campaign, among other things.

“Combatting the ongoing opioid epidemic and saving the lives of Marylanders continues to be a top priority of this administration,” said Lt. Gov. Boyd K. Rutherford. “The programs and recipients of this funding represent the comprehensive, holistic approach we are taking to address this issue from all angles.”

About The Author: Bethany Hooper

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Bethany Hooper has been with The Dispatch since 2016. She currently covers various general stories. Hooper graduated from Stephen Decatur High School in 2012 and the University of Maryland in 2016, where she completed double majors in journalism and economics.