Milwaukee County Behavioral Health Division receives $2.6 Million to help families affected by the opioid epidemic

(Milwaukee, WI) November 27, 2017 – The Milwaukee County Behavioral Health Division (BHD) will take a big step forward in the fight against opioid abuse thanks to two grants, totaling more than $2.6 million. The grants from the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the Wisconsin Department of Health Services’ State Targeted Response (STR) initiative will help BHD provide more programs and services for individuals struggling to recover from addiction and for families struggling to stay together.

“The Milwaukee County Behavioral Health Division plays a vital role in connecting individuals in our community with life changing behavioral health care,” says Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele. “The programs receiving these grants, our Milwaukee County Family Drug Treatment Court and our AODA housing and residential programs, are recognized as models for helping individuals gain hope, recover from addiction and reclaim their lives. These grants will make it possible for us to connect more people with evidence-based and trauma informed programs and services to overcome addiction and strengthen their families.”

Milwaukee County Family Drug Treatment Court (FDTC) will put the $2,124,589 SAMHSA grant to work over the next five years to enhance substance use disorder treatment services for FDTC participants and their children. Specifically, grant funds will address gaps in the treatment continuum for court involved individuals who need treatment for a substance use disorder and/or co-occurring substance use disorder and mental health disorders while better addressing the needs of their children.

“The Milwaukee County Family Drug Treatment Court is nationally recognized for its family-centered trauma informed approach, helping parents recover from substance use disorders while keeping families together when safe and appropriate,” says the Milwaukee County Circuit Court Chief Judge Maxine Aldridge White.

The $505,639 grant from the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, part of the State Targeted Response (STR) initiative funded by SAMHSA, will enable BHD to expand its AODA treatment and recovery services to 75 additional individuals on the AODA transitional residential waiting list. These treatment services include: Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) and access to this treatment, residential treatment, recovery housing, day treatment, individual and family counseling and more. Recovery services include: housing, transportation, food/clothing/basic needs, parenting training, child care, life skills training and more.

”We know when we connect individuals to programs like Family Drug Treatment Court, they have access to the treatment, guidance and supports to make home a safe and permanent place for their children,” said Mike Lappen, administrator for the Milwaukee County Behavioral Health Division. “These programs stabilize homes and build healthy communities.”

To learn more about the Milwaukee County Behavioral Health Division’s substance abuse services visit www.milwaukee.gov/BHD.

About the Milwaukee County Behavioral Health Division

The Milwaukee County Behavioral Health Division (BHD) is the community’s connection point to vital, high-quality behavioral health care. BHD empowers safe, healthy and meaningful lives by ensuring that everyone gets connected to great behavioral health care, no matter their severity of need or ability to pay. Through BHD, Milwaukee County residents have access to the largest network of behavioral health providers in the state. BHD provides care and treatment to adults, adolescents and children with mental illness, substance abuse disorders and co-occurring illnesses and offers services across the following four key areas: Crisis services, community-based services, hospital services, and child and adolescent services. BHD is home to that state’s only Psychiatric Emergency Room – one that is regularly modeled after by other psychiatric ERs around the country.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.