State To Open Opioid Abuse Help Center In Bucks County

An additional 25 Centers of Excellence, which provide treatment to residents with opioid-related substance use disorders, will open throughout Pennsylvania by January 1, 2017, Gov. Tom Wolf announced Monday.

One of the locations selected is the Family Service Association of Bucks County.

The additional centers will serve at least 5,600 additional people. According to the governor's office, Centers of Excellence "are a central, efficient hub around which treatment revolves."

The centers will have navigators to assist people with opioid-related substance use disorders through the medical system, and ensure they receive behavioral and physical health care, as well as any evidence-based medication-assisted treatment needed, officials said.

“As we all know, the opioid epidemic does not discriminate – it affects Pennsylvanians from all walks of life,” said Governor Tom Wolf. “With these additional locations, my administration is continuing its commitment to expanding high-quality treatment across Pennsylvania.”

Once the 25 new locations open, there will be a total of 45 Centers of Excellence across Pennsylvania.

"The Department’s goal is to provide all Pennsylvanians with treatment that addresses not only their substance use disorder but also the underlying physical and behavioral health issues that often fuel that are at the root of their addiction," said DHS Secretary Ted Dallas.

The 2016-2017 budget included $10 million in behavioral health funding and $5 million in medical assistance funding, totaling $15 million. DHS will draw down $5.4 million in federal funding for an overall total of $20.4 million, according to information from the governor's office.

The 25 selected recipients are:

• AIDS Case Group/Sharon Hill Medical, Delaware County
• Butler Memorial Hospital, Butler County
• CASA of Livingston County, Inc., Bradford County
• Clearfield-Jefferson Drug and Alcohol Commission, Clearfield, Jefferson Counties
• Clinical Outcomes Group, Inc., Schuylkill County
• Community Health & Dental Care, Inc., Montgomery County
• Family First Health Corporation, York County
• Family Service Association of Bucks County, Bucks County
• Geisinger Clinic/GIM Danville, Mifflin, Montour Counties
• Hamilton Health Center, Dauphin County
• Highlands Hospital, Fayette County
• Lancaster General Hospital, Lancaster County
• Magee-Womens Hospital of UPMC, Allegheny, Lawrence, Venango, Blair, and Butler Counties
• Mon Valley Community Health Services, Inc., Westmoreland County
• Mt. Pocono Medical, Monroe County
• Neighborhood Health Centers of Lehigh Valley, Lehigh, Northampton Counties
• Pathways to Housing PA, Philadelphia County
• Penn Presbyterian Medical Center and Perelman School of Medicine Departments of Psychiatry and Obstetrics/Gynecology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia County
• Public Health Management Corporation, Philadelphia County
• Reading Hospital and Health System, Berks County
• The Wright Center Medical Group, PC, Lackawanna County
• Total Wellness Center, LLC. Clean Slate, Lycoming, Luzerne, Erie Counties
• University of Pittsburgh Physicians: General Internal Medicine Clinic – Oakland, Allegheny County
• West Penn Allegheny Health System, Allegheny County
• WPIC of UPMCPS, Allegheny County

Patch file photo