NYS oasas SOR 3 - new york proposes to continue investing in regional networks to build cross-system collaboration and increase connections to care

New york funded regional networks through SOR 2 to provide services across the continuum of care to create a wholistic approach to community intervention at the regional level. This included utilizing measures to encourage network and provider collaboration to attain further increases in mat initiation, mat adherence, continuation of engagement in treatment, and continuity between levels of care, as well as demonstrably improved outreach to people who use opioids and/or stimulants who are not engaged in care. The networks incorporated the full continuum of oasas services including prevention and recovery into the network and included a representative from each on the leadership team. Each network was encouraged to include a full array of SUD services including harm reduction, crisis services, and evidence-based prevention practices. Each of the networks has had success in bringing providers together, implementing scopes of work as proposed in their application, and solving problems related to gaps and barriers to care in their communities. An example of this is the recent opportunity through another funding source to implement transportation within the region for non-medical services to support recovery. Each of the networks applied for the funding with unique solutions based on the needs of their region capitalizing on the collaboration of the network and the current SUD assets in the region. Through a request for applications, each regional network will identify the innovative models of service provision in prevention, treatment, and recovery that address the existing needs of their population. Oasas will provide a list of services which the regional network will select from to best address local needs. Among these services, oasas will place an emphasis on in-community services as modeled in the center of treatment innovation (coti) program initiated under STR and continued through the SOR grant. The model includes transportation and mobile treatment, the use of a peer outreach workforce, tele-practice and linkages mental health and medical services. Other models and types of service the networks will include are: linking emergency rooms to peers, outpatient treatment programs, and addiction medicine specialists to improve intervention and initiation of medication for opioid use disorder; linking outpatient treatment providers to federally qualified health centers; improve provider capacity to use quality improvement strategies to increase access to mat initiation, mat adherence and improved rates of follow up after high intensity services; improve SUD provider network collaboration for shared and aggregated data across a network of providers, implementation of coordinated prevention, clinical and peer interventions across the network; and increase positive family management; adult oriented recovery centers and youth clubhouses to promote substance free positive social activities to promote recovery. The existing regional networks provide an opportunity for the state to meet the goals of the SOR grant at a regional level, across the state to ensure universal access to OUD identification, outreach, harm reduction services, medication access, prevention, and recovery support.