Brunswick County hiring mental health/substance abuse specialist with opioid settlement funds
BRUNSWICK COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — North Carolina is getting millions of dollars in opioid settlement money and Brunswick County is deciding how to spend its portion of the funds.
On Tuesday night, the board of commissioners voted to spend the $ 13.6 million in settlement funds on evidence-based, high-impact strategies to address the opioid crisis. Under the plan, commissioners also voted to spend nearly $170,000 of those funds to hire a full-time mental health/substance abuse clinician.
Cathy Lytch, social services director for the county, says it’s important having someone specifically trained in mental health to connect families with the support they need.
“Providing that crisis support when it’s needed, referring out and keeping an ongoing list of which provider provides which services,” Lytch said. “How we can link individuals and children faster is what we’re trying to do.”
Kenny House, vice president of clinical services at Coastal Horizons, spoke during public comment sharing his support for the decision to hire the specialist. In addition to the support, House encouraged the commissioners to support the treatment infrastructure already in place in the county and the existing treatment efforts — like medically assisted treatment.
“Sometimes that can be viewed controversially, but the research shows that medications, when used in conjunction with behavioral health services and other community supports, have the best outcome for people that suffer from opioid use disorders,” House said.
House says he hopes Brunswick County’s opioid funds can be used to close the gaps in care by catering to those who are underinsured or uninsured and potentially expanding Coastal Horizons’ Quick Response Team (QRT). The QRT is a team of peer support specialists and licensed therapists working to connect overdose survivors in the Wilmington area with the resources they need.
Coastal Horizons serves Brunswick, New Hanover, and Pender Counties, with its main campus in Wilmington.
