Mayor Domenic J. Sarno joined with Health & Human Services (HHS) Commissioner Helen Caulton Harris and team to bring greetings at the HHS Opioid Recovery Remediation Fund Forum on Thursday morning at the Barney Carriage House located inside Forest Park. Deputy HHS Commissioner Ann Kissel, Deputy Commissioner Tiana Davis, Opioid Response Program Manager Justin Chellman, Dr. Frank Robinson, Police Superintendent Larry Akers, Fire Commissioner BJ Calvi, State Representative Carlos Gonzalez, and City Councilors Zaida Govan, Tim Allen and numerous agencies and providers that are doing angel’s work were in attendance
Mayor Sarno stated, “We all have or know of a family member or friend that has been affected by the scourge of opioids. Some beat it but some do not. I will continue to be steadfast in working with my dedicated city team and all of our community partners and stakeholders to help those in need and secure whatever resources are necessary.”
The Opioid Recovery Remediation Fund Forum is an important next step in the city’s efforts to address the opioid crisis in Springfield. The Massachusetts Attorney General’s office successfully litigated opioid companies for their role in driving the opioid epidemic and created the Opioid Recovery Remediation Fund (ORRF) to manage these funds. The City of Springfield is going to receive a minimum of $7 million from the ORRF over the next 15 years.
As a first step in the process in deciding how to best utilize these funds, the Department of Health and Human Services collected a survey, held key informant interviews and conducted focus groups to better understand our Springfield-specific needs. The HHS Department received 455 survey responses this summer with 76% of responses coming from Springfield residents. HHS held 28 key informant interviews and conducted 4 focus groups while working with 19 participating Springfield-based organizations.
Health and Human Services Commissioner Helen Caulton Harris stated, “Our strategy includes gathering and incorporating recent and pertinent opioid related studies, while prioritizing community feedback. This will guide the careful distribution of Opioid Recovery Remediation funds.”
As a next step in this ongoing process, HHS conducted the Opioid Recovery Remediation Fund Forum to continue to assess assets and gaps within the system for substance use prevention, treatment and recovery. This forum will be an important part of identifying what issues are most important to Springfield and where these funds would be best utilized.
Mayor Sarno explained, “The damage inflicted by the opioid crisis to Springfield’s most precious resource, our residents, has been tremendous and will take Herculean efforts from the city, nonprofits, our community partners and stakeholders to heal.”
“I want to thank Governor Maura Healey for her leadership and efforts for holding these pharmaceutical companies accountable for this opioid crisis when she served as our Attorney General and securing Springfield $7 million from the Opioid Recovery Remediation Fund. HHS Commissioner Caulton-Harris and I thank all those who have responded to the ORRF survey and all who continue to be involved in this process of recovery for our community. Your input is an important component to identifying our community’s needs.”
Mayor Sarno continued, “I also commend and thank Health and Human Services Commissioner Helen Caulton Harris and her dedicated HHS team including Opioid Response Program Manager Justin Chellman who are fully committed to saving lives and helping people onto a positive healthy path forward. In addition to my dedicated city team, I want to thank Sheriff Nick Cocchi for his efforts on section 35 and our Mill Street drug and alcohol treatment rehab center, and all of our community partners for their continued unyielding efforts in working together to help those get the treatment and resources they need to heal from this opioid situation.”
“It is important to have as many tools in the toolbox as possible when addressing mental health needs. I am incredibly proud of the work that BHN (Behavioral Health Network ) is doing in partnership with our city’s law enforcement and Health and Human Services division. The partnership has also benefitted the Springfield Police Department’s already great on-street relationship with city residents, assisting with their continued efforts to not only serve and protect citizens, but to work with the community to promote a safe and equitable environment for all,” said Mayor Sarno.
Mayor Sarno went on, “With the help of many of the folks at the forum today, we have continually collaborate with local nonprofits, a network of mental health providers and a team of on-the-street outreach workers to provide services and intervention engagement at specific targeted areas of the city known for active substance use and panhandling. The city’s two mobile vans are capable of responding and providing outreach efforts and assistance which has also been instrumental. The Springfield Police Department and Fire Department have saved nearly 600 lives by administering Narcan. My administration also will continue to pursue our own singular and separate law suit against opioid and pharmaceutical conglomerates, with those monies coming directly back to Springfield. Commissioner Caulton Harris and I will also continue push any and all preventatives and proactive initiatives, including advocating to the state and federal level fir more treatment beds for Springfield and Western Mass.”
The City of Springfield’s Department of Health and Human Services (SDHHS) is committed to addressing the opioid crisis with a data-driven and community centered approach. Their mission extends beyond simply dispersing Opioid Recovery Remediation Funds. Their aim is to allocate resources strategically and equitably, guided by the voices and needs of our community.
This work has been ongoing since 2019 when the Greater Springfield Opioid Crisis Coalition (GSOCC) was formed. The GSOCC and is led by the Springfield Department of Health and Human Services in response to state data highlighting the disproportionate impact of the opioid crisis on Springfield. Collective members include service providers, recovery coaches, first responders, coalition organizers, and people with lived experience. Members of the GSOCC Planning and Design team include Magda Colon from Learn to Cope, Nellie Maldonado and Pedro Alvarez from Tapestry Health, Ashley Bellio from Behavioral Health Network (BHN), Patrick Meuse from Mercy Medical Center, and Richard Johnson from the New North Citizens Council.
Following the creation of the GSOCC, in 2022, Massachusetts participated in national financial settlements with various companies to address damages from the opioid epidemic. 40% of the funds secured will go to local municipalities, and 60% to the statewide ORRF. Springfield will receive a minimum of $7 million over 15 years. Earlier this year, the ORRF project was launched and HHS began collecting data and feedback.
At today’s ORRF Forum in Springfield, HHS Commissioner Helen Caulton Harris and the Department shared their findings with stakeholders and discussed how to use funds for further action. The Forum was hosted by the City’s HHS team and brought together doctors, outreach workers, recovery specialists, law enforcement, public safety and emergency responders, corrections workers, clinical educators, elected officials, and community members.
In the survey they conducted by Springfield Department of Health and Human Services this summer, 49% of respondents reported that their community has been impacted by Opioid Use Disorder with 46% reporting that a family/friend of person affected by opioids. Between FY22 and FY23, Springfield saw a 37% rise in opioid-related overdose death rates, while Hampden County experienced a 16% increase, and there was no change in Massachusetts.
In FY23, 85.8% of opioid-related overdose deaths in Springfield had a toxicology screen available. In FY23, fentanyl was present in 95.9% of opioid related overdose deaths that had a toxicology screen available among residents of Springfield. Fentanyl is a highly potent synthetic opioid, up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine. Most of the fentanyl involved in overdoses is illegally manufactured and distributed, often mixed with other drugs to increase potency and profitability. This dangerous practice has led to a dramatic increase in overdose deaths and addiction.
In FY23, 9221 naloxone kits were received by programs and people in Springfield, surpassing the “Excellent” distribution benchmark of over 80 naloxone kits distributed per opioid-related overdose death.
The data collected by Springfield’s HHS Department identified that recovery support services are crucial for improving well-being through education, employment, housing, and peer resources, aiming to improve the functioning of individuals. It also noted that the community is in need of a plan or strategy for substance abuse disorder prevention and education.
The ORRF Focus Areas include:
• Opioid Use Disorder Treatment & Recovery
• Prevent Misuse of Opioids and Implement Prevention Education
• Connections to Care
• Criminal-Justice-Involved Persons
• Harm Reduction
• Pregnant or Parenting Women and their Families, Including Babies
Health and Human Services Commissioner Helen Caulton Harris extended gratitude to everyone who contributed to this project, stating, “Thank you to each and every contributor to our ORRF project and forum, including planners, designers, survey respondents, key informant interviewees, and focus group participants. Your insights have been instrumental in shaping our work and will undoubtedly contribute to comprehensive outcomes. We deeply appreciate your time, effort, and collaboration.”
The community is invited to join and find resources later this month on International Overdose Awareness Day. Springfield is hosting an Overdose Awareness Event on August 30, 2024. It will feature a resource fair, remembrance walk, speaking series, candlelit vigil, and a moment of silence. The event begins at 6:00 p.m. on August 30th at Tapestry Health at 1985 Main Street, Suite G. At 7:00 p.m. the remembrance walk will take place from Tapestry to the steps of City Hall. Speaking will begin at 7:30 p.m. on the steps of City Hall followed by a candlelit vigil and moment of silence.
