HHS Office of Minority Health expands effort to fight opioids, adds $2 million in grants to Empowered Communities Initiative

HHS Office of Minority Health expands effort to fight opioids, adds $2 million in grants to Empowered Communities Initiative

HHS Office of Minority Health expands effort to fight opioids, adds $2 million in grants to Empowered Communities Initiative

The Office of Minority Health (OMH) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today announced a $2 million expansion of its Empowered Communities for a Healthier Nation Initiative to help communities respond to the opioid epidemic. Last year, six of the 15 awards under the initiative went to community partnerships to address opioid addiction.  In the expansion of the initiative this year, OMH is adding awards for organizations in six communities to help racial and ethnic minority and disadvantaged populations that are disproportionately affected by the opioid epidemic.

The six organizations receiving the 2018 Empowered Communities Initiative funds are: 

• Boston Public Health Commission - Boston, MA - $349,963
• Eastern Maine Medical Center - Bangor, ME - $348,268
• North Jersey AIDS Alliance (North Jersey Community Research Initiative) - Newark, NJ - $350,000
• Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board - Portland, OR - $349,999
• Purdue University - West Lafayette, IN - $350,000
• The Ohio State University - Columbus, OH - $349,934
  
  Total:   $2,098,164

“The Office of Minority Health’s Empowered Communities Initiative is an important opportunity for partners to come together at the local level to help prevent the tragedy that has affected too many families in virtually every corner of the country,” said HHS Assistant Secretary for Health ADM Brett P. Giroir. “Addiction is a disease and should be treated as such. By supporting organizations to make strides in treatment on the ground and in communities, we can reach a critical stage of our efforts, recovery.”

HHS is leading the national commitment to address the opioid epidemic. The department initially declared the crisis a nationwide Public Health Emergency on October 26, 2017 and since 2017, HHS has disbursed more than $2 billion (more than any previous year) in grants to fight the opioid crisis.

“We know one of our best hopes in addressing the opioid crisis is by empowering the communities that are most affected,” said Dr. Matthew Lin, deputy assistant director for minority health and director of the HHS Office of Minority Health.“OMH is committed to working with partners and organizations who can come together to implement community-based solutions for the opioid crisis and for other public health challenges.”

The OMH Empowered Communities Initiative promotes community-based collaborations, including academic research centers and prevention centers, to improve the health of communities where opioid misuse pose a threat to the public health.

For additional information visit: http://bit.ly/EmpoweredCommunitiesFY18