Florida's state opioid response project IV - florida's state opioid response (SOR) grant will implement a comprehensive approach to addressing opioid and stimulant misuse, disorders, and overdoses

The populations of focus for this project are uninsured and underinsured individuals who misuse stimulants (including cocaine, methamphetamine, and prescription stimulants) or opioids, and individuals diagnosed with an opioid or stimulant use disorder. This includes individuals with CO- occurring mental health conditions. SOR-funded providers will serve individuals reentering communities from criminal justice settings, parents in the child welfare system, youth, and all others who meet eligibility. The overarching goal of the project is to reduce numbers and rates of opioid- caused deaths. A major objective of the program is to increase access to the most effective treatments for opioid and stimulant use disorders, including increased admissions to medication assisted treatment programs and expansion of hospital and jail bridge programs. The total combined number of unduplicated individuals targeted to receive treatment and recovery support services per year is 10,000. The SOR-funded service array for opioid and stimulant misuse and disorders is comprehensive and covers the entire spectrum of care across primary prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery support domains. Covered services include outreach, assessment, crisis support, intervention, medical services, day care, day treatment, case management, incidental expenses, in-home/on-site, outpatient (including intensive outpatient), recovery support, supported employment, supportive housing, care coordination, drop-in centers, respite, and aftercare. Hospital bridge programs, which initiate services in the emergency department and link individuals to longer-term care through a community-based network service provider, will be maintained and expanded, along with jail bridge program that initiate treatment in a jail setting. Distribution of FDA approved medication designed to reverse opioid overdoses, and associated overdose recognition and response training, will increase through a naloxone saturation plan implemented by the department's overdose prevention program (OPP). SOR funds will be used to provide overdose prevention and response training to at least 25,000 individuals per year. The department will continue to partner with the florida harm reduction collective to implement a mail-based naloxone distribution service for the hardest to reach populations. To prevent opioid and stimulant misuse among young people, SOR funds will be used to implement evidence-based prevention programs such as life skills training and multifaceted media campaigns, among others. Recovery support services include increased access to recovery housing, with a goal to establish 44 additional oxford houses per year. The mat prescriber peer mentoring project, which uses expert mentors to advise and guide prescribers through both formal instructional sessions and real-time consultations will continue to work to expand bridge programs. Additionally, SOR funds will be used to fund a statewide recovery community organization (RCO) to provide technical assistant and training to rcos across the state. RCO expansion will include a focus on special populations such as youth and veterans. Faces and voices of recovery will continue to support RCO development and sustainability. The program will deploy recovery quality improvement specialists to conduct quality assurance reviews around recovery-oriented practices and manage activities related to the development of recovery-oriented systems of care. Behavioral health consultants will use their clinical expertise to collaborate with child protective investigators and dependency case managers to build knowledge within front line staff for identifying substance use disorders, improving engagement with families, and improving access to treatment.