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WATERVILLE — Kennebec Behavioral Health has received a planning grant from the Maine Health Access Foundation to build practice and provider capacity to begin offering medication assisted treatment services to medically under-served people who are struggling with opiate addiction.
The funding, which totals $100,000 over two years, will support the newly formed Somerset Expansion of Addiction Care Collaborative, according to a news release from the organization. Maine’s opioid crisis claimed 378 lives last year, and Thomas McAdam, chief executive officer at KBH, highlighted the importance of addressing the opioid crisis.
“We know that the epidemic of addiction is both a tragedy and a legitimate health crisis,” he said in the news release. “We are grateful that MeHAF is supporting our work to build a better system of care.”
Kennebec Behavioral Health will engage a broad-based network of partners, including Crisis & Counseling, Redington-Fairview General Hospital and Skowhegan Family Medicine, as well as emergency medical services, law enforcement, and peer support groups to ensure the necessary referral relationships and wrap-around services to support expanded access to MAT in primary care settings.
Pat McKenzie, administrator of outpatient and substance abuse services at Kennebec Behavioral Health said, “There is so much to be done, but the low-hanging fruit is getting more coordinated and integrated treatment options in place. We are thrilled to finally have funding to build a real system of care among primary care, specialty care, consumers, and critical stakeholders that can result in long-term recovery for individuals and their families.”
Kennebec Behavioral Health is a non-profit health care organization that has provided mental health and substance abuse services and supports in central Maine since 1960. KBH operates clinics in Waterville, Skowhegan, Winthrop and Augusta, and has three vocational clubhouses located in Waterville, Augusta and Lewiston.
For more information call 1-888-322-2136. Information can also be found at www.kbhmaine.org.
