(WWLP- Melissa Torres, Emma McCorkindale) – Senator John Velis, who chairs the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Mental Health, Substance Use, and Recovery held a roundtable discussion Monday morning aimed at addressing the rise in overdoses.
“We’re seeing an uptick in rural communities and the reality is that the drug addiction crisis impacts different regions of the Commonwealth in different ways,” said Velis.
Monday’s roundtable discussion in the town of Russell was meant to focus on how the state can support individuals that are affected by substance use and those who directly provide them life saving services.
“We need to hear from the rural communities and the rural providers about what are the limiting factors? What are the biggest impediments to them being able to treat people in the best way possible? To get folks back on their feet,” said Velis.
The data from this discussion will be used to create a substance use disorder bill that addresses the disparities that rural communities face when it comes to accessibility.
Velis added, “Transportation is an issue here so someone who who really needs help might not be able to, let’s say methadone clinic, they might not be able to get there and you have to go there every single day.”
Rural communities also lack the accessibility to providers in comparison to urban and suburban areas within the Commonwealth. Velis wants to see if they can create more access so that everyone can get the support they need on their path to recovery.
Velis firmly believes that in order to tackle this issue head on, we need to understand that the overdose crisis differs in every community within the Commonwealth.