State Overdose Task Force Needs Public Input

An overdose task force formed to address the state’s addiction crisis is hosting a community meeting on Monday (Sept. 28) and the public is urged to come to offer feedback.

The Governor’s Overdose Prevention and Intervention Task Force will meet at the Sopkin Auditorium at Miriam Hospital (164 Summit Ave., Providence) from 7 to 8:30 p.m.

There will be three panels each with an expert speaker followed by a public comment period.

“The feedback will inform a strategic plan that the Task Force will deliver in early November to [Governor Gina] Raimondo,” a news release stated. “Among other elements, the strategic plan will focus on major initiatives that address prevention, treatment, reversal of overdose, and recovery, as well as performance metrics for measuring success of the initiatives.”

Task force co-chair Maria Montanaro, director of the Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals, said that the task force is attempting to address the overdose and addiction crisis head-on but the effort will fall flat without input from people who live with the epidemic every day.

“We need to hear from people who are living and experiencing this crisis every day, either themselves or through their family members, classmates, colleagues, neighbors, and friends,” Montanaro said.

Last year, 240 people died from accidental overdoses in Rhode Island. More than 1,000 have died over the past five years.

Residents who can’t make the forum can submit feedback online.

The Task Force is made up of government leaders, healthcare providers, insurers, legislators, and experts in the field of treatment and recovery.

A second community meeting will be held in October. More information about the Task Force can be found online at: www.health.ri.gov/overdosetaskforce