Recovery Ohio Director Alisha Nelson and the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (OhioMHAS) Director Lori Criss announced grants totaling $76,534,000 for new strategic efforts to combat Ohio’s drug crisis in local communities.

Ottawa and Erie counties were allocated a total of $1,047,374. At the top of the list were Franklin and Lucas counties ($3.4 million each), Lorain County ($3 million) and the Paint Valley ADAMH Board ($3 million), in Chillicothe, Ohio.

The grants, which represent a portion of Ohio’s overall share of $96 million in federal State Opioid Response (SOR) 2.0 funding, come at a time when many communities are seeing a spike in demand for behavioral health services amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. OhioMHAS will grant $58,884,000 directly to local county alcohol, drug addiction and mental health services boards and their community partners. Additional funding for innovations in approaches to connecting people to care will be made available by OhioMHAS as part the SOR 2.0 investments.

“Many communities are seeing an increase in demand for mental health and substance use disorder services as the pandemic continues. The uncertainties of the pandemic intensify the struggle with substance use disorder that many Ohioans face,” said Gov. Mike DeWine. “Through the leadership of the teams at OMHAS, in partnership with the agencies under the RecoveryOhio initiative, we have been better able to meet the needs of Ohioans that are struggling, and federal funding will increase the flexibility of communities to address their specific, unique needs.”

Ohio’s SOR 2.0 project seeks to strengthen and expand the available array of treatment and recovery support services available to Ohioans. County boards will leverage the grants to support a variety of projects, including treatment programs for new or expecting mothers who have an opioid use disorder, recovery housing, treatment supports for criminal justice-involved Ohioans, and expanded access to the overdose reversal drug naloxone, among others.

“While addiction and mental illness are a national and statewide crisis, we know that prevention, treatment, and recovery take place in local communities,” said Director Criss. “This investment marks a true partnership among federal and state government to support local planning and service delivery and improve the lives of individuals, families, and communities across Ohio.”

For more on Ohio programs to fight opioid addiction, visit recoveryohio.gov.