States across the country will get over $1 billion to help combat the opioid crisis, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced Wednesday.
Arizona will receive over $20 million from that fund, which will be used to provide access to medication-assisted treatment and mental health services, with a focus on people in rural areas, veterans and parents.
The number of Americans misusing opioids dropped for the second year in a row while the number seeking treatment for heroin addiction increased. The U.S. health department said that’s a good indicator that their year-old initiative is seeing success.
However Arizona has not mirrored the national trend. The state health department says opioid-caused overdoses have increased 18 percent from 2016 to 2017.
