TRENTON, NJ — The New Jersey Department of Health announced Sept. 11 that it received $7.4 million in CDC Overdose Data to Action funding to address drug overdoses in the state. The funding will be used to amplify Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration’s comprehensive approach of linking individuals with substance use disorder to care and treatment, reducing opioid prescribing and improving data collection to better inform initiatives, according to a press release from the department.
“The overdose epidemic is a complex public health challenge,” NJDOH acting Commissioner Judith Persichilli said. “With this funding, we are further engaging health care providers, local health officials and law enforcement to ensure more residents are connected to treatment and to build on the state’s comprehensive approach to reduce overdoses in our state.”
Funding will be used to establish more robust links to care for individuals with substance use disorder with a particular focus on vulnerable groups such as pregnant women, homeless individuals and LGBT populations.
The Department of Health will expand “5 Minutes to Help” training initiative for emergency medical service providers to improve connections to care for non-fatal overdose victims. This program, which consists of both an online and in-classroom component, focuses on all first responders. The goal of the program is to educate responders on proper communication with patients following treatment from a suspected opioid overdose; provide patients with recovery resources that are available locally, regionally and statewide; and reduce the number of repeat overdose patients. The program was piloted in July with almost 50 EMS clinicians.
The Department of Health will also invest in Harm Reduction Centers in the state. New Jersey has seven Harm Reduction Centers, also known as Syringe Access Programs, which provide access to new syringes, overdose prevention education, naloxone, and HIV and Hepatitis C testing. The additional funding will expand the scope of harm reduction specialists to provide outreach, counseling and care coordination at these centers to help populations particularly vulnerable in this epidemic to make safer choices.
With this funding, the department will also promote trauma-informed approaches among health care providers, which will ultimately improve access to prevention and treatment services for individuals facing addiction. Trauma Informed Care recognizes the impact of trauma on clients and provides care and support services that are appropriate to those who may have experienced trauma.
This funding will also support improved data collection and analysis to better understand the status of the overdose epidemic in New Jersey and employ better informed strategies for prevention of use, and reduction of deaths and recidivism. The CDC funding will help the department collect more timely and comprehensive data from emergency departments, and improve data analysis. With these funds, the department will continue to build on its Opioid Data Dashboard, which provides statistics on overdose deaths, crime, naloxone administration, prescription monitoring, drug-related hospital visits and other data to understand the population health impacts of the epidemic. Murphy has funded the expansion of the state’s data capacity and technology infrastructure to inform the administration’s response to the epidemic.
The department will pass $4.3 million of the grant money to the Department of Law and Public Safety for use over a three-year period to fund programs and initiatives that advance the fight against the opioid crisis. The vast majority of the funds — $3 million — will be used to enhance and expand Operation Helping Hand programs in all 21 counties. These programs help connect individuals with opioid use disorder to necessary treatment. Additional funds will be used to fund the salaries of two peer-to-peer learning coordinators who will offer law enforcement agencies training in understanding and addressing addiction. The remaining funds will be used to enhance New Jersey’s Prescription Monitoring Program. NJ PMP funds will be used to monitor the compliance of licensed health professionals, to further integrate PMP data into electronic health records and to implement programs that support coordination of care for at-risk individuals.
“Defeating the opioid crisis in New Jersey demands our sustained support for individuals struggling to break the cycle of addiction. The grant money we will receive from the Department of Health will provide program funding for years to come,” Attorney Gen. Gurbir Grewal said. “This critical revenue source will help us hold the ground we have gained in the battle against addiction as we continue our efforts to combat this deadly health crisis.”
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