Task force says fight against heroin epidemic in Bradenton needs more money

BRADENTON -- By the end of the first Opioid Task Force meeting, the problems of the opioid and heroin epidemic in Manatee County were clear, but solutions were still elusive.

The task force has been established to try tackling the drug overdose crisis in Manatee and Sarasota counties head on. A group of more than 30 officials met Tuesday afternoon, including representatives from the Manatee County Substance Abuse Coalition, Centerstone Florida, Manatee County Emergency Medical Services, the Manatee County Sheriff's Office, the Bradenton Police Department, Manatee Memorial Hospital, Blake Medical Center, Turning Points, the Salvation Army and more.

Officials mentioned several problems with how addiction and overdose victims are dealt with in Manatee County. But possible solutions all seemed to come back to one issue: funding.

"So there is no system to get people into treatment they need, no space in treatment and then no money to keep them in treatment even if we had the room?" asked

Rita Chamberlain, associate director of the Substance Abuse Coalition, about halfway through the meeting. "Is that what I'm hearing?"

Chamberlain was echoed by several officials, many of whom expressed frustration that addicts would be revived from overdoses only to go right back out onto the streets, continuing the same behavior.

"We keep having issues where they get out of the hospital and we're running to them again an hour and a half later," said Stephen Krivjanik, chief of Manatee County Emergency Medical Services. "We need to fix that, and I don't know if the solution is incarceration or treatment or what. But something has to be done."

One possibility, said Jessica Spencer of the Substance Abuse Coalition, is keeping volunteers in the hospitals who could dedicate face time with addicts and really work with them on their needs. Others agreed, saying pamphlets or pieces of paper with treatment options would not be enough.

Wendy Nebrija, chairwoman of the newly formed task force, said she believes the task force has two issues to focus on right now: How to handle overdose victims to ensure they receive treatment, and increased funding.

"We need somebody to provide referral information for services after overdoses who can provide a warm connection, not just a piece of paper," Nebrija said. "And we need funding for more treatment for people who don't have insurance or Medicaid and can't afford it."

The meeting was at the downtown offices of Centerstone, formerly Manatee Glens. It is the only treatment center in Manatee that receives state and federal funds, meaning it has beds available to those who otherwise wouldn't have the means to afford treatment.

Conversations kept circling back to money. There needs to be drastic increases in funding for treatment, and it needs to be consistent, officials agreed. Grants are not enough.

"We have 27 people right now," said Jessica Crosby, residential addictions manager at Centerstone Florida. "And we have a wait list that goes until the end of August."

The primary funding possibility is from the state, officials agreed. Nebrija said they would begin drafting proposals for the Manatee County legislative delegation meeting to be held Aug. 24, hoping to get more funding into treatment in the county.

Increased state funding to local treatment centers did not occur last legislative session. Even a $300,000 item for a psychiatry residency program at Centerstone Florida was ultimately vetoed by Gov. Rick Scott. Scott's office said in a statement that $35 million had been added to mental health and addiction funding statewide in 2015, a 3.5 percent increase in overall funding, but could not provide specific figures for local facilities.

The task force was officially created June 16, Nebrija said. It's the first group of its kind that brings together representatives from across Manatee County to try to solve the opioid and heroin overdose issue.

Climbing numbers made the group a necessity. There were 339 total overdose calls in all of 2013, 700 in 2014, and 630 overdose calls through the end of June in 2015.

Crosby said the group started small at first, and that she was surprised by how many people were in the first meeting.

"This was just a small handful of people when we first started," she said. "This is huge. And that's a good thing."

Kate Irby, Herald online/political reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7055. You can follow her on Twitter @KateIrby

This story was originally published July 22, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Task force says fight against heroin epidemic in Bradenton needs more money."