Rural towns debate where to put addiction treatment centers - Entrepreneur Generations

Rural communities can benefit from addiction treatment centers, but some residents are reluctant to allow them to be located near their homes. In Port Jervis, a small town of about 8,000 just north of New York City, city officials recently denied plans to locate a new treatment facility, Cornerstone Family Healthcare, in an office building downtown on Pike Street, citing worries that it could be dangerous for nearby children.

Heroin is a big problem in the town, according to resident Anthony Cole, which is why a smaller-scale methadone clinic already exists in the building where the new treatment center was slated to operate. "Office manager Diana Hutchinson said the clinic had about 125 visits last week, and that if Cornerstone – a competitor – were allowed to set up shop in the building, it would be exactly what this ailing community needs," Ben Nandy reports for Spectrum News in Albany, New York. Medication-assisted therapy is widely acknowledged to be the most effective way to treat opioid addiction.

Local resident Margaret Hendershot, who said she used to struggle with alcohol, said a treatment center wouldn't cause more problems than a bar. ""It's methadone. What about alcohol? Every time you turn around, you see these bars going up," she told Nandy. "There should be something different than bars."

The Cornerstone facility could accommodate more than 200 people. Other area Cornerstone facilities already treat and counsel about 450 addicts in surrounding Orange County, including 50 people from Port Jervis who regularly make the 40-mile trip to the nearest facility in Newburgh for treatment.

from The Rural Blog http://ift.tt/2u57biP Rural towns debate where to put addiction treatment centers - Entrepreneur Generations

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