The Pima County Board of Supervisors accepted a three-year, $1.475 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to combat opioid addiction.
Named the Unified Medication Assisted Treatment Targeted Engagement Response (U-MATTER), this program will pair peer navigators with counselors to respond with law enforcement when they encounter an individual struggling with substance abuse. Counselors will refer those individuals to community treatment programs as an alternative to jail.
Program funding will also train officers and program staffers in Mental Health First Aid and other techniques proven to be effective in preventing overdose deaths.
– Terrance Cheung, Pima County