Local taxpayers may be investing about $1.1 million into five programs proposed through the Alliance for Substance Abuse Progress (ASAP) within the next few months.
The Columbus City Council will be asked to pay half of the expenses for all programs, while the remainder will be sought from the Bartholomew County Council.
Cost estimates for current and anticipated programs were provided Tuesday to the county council by ASAP senior advisor Mary Ferdon.
So far, only one program has received a complete green light to move forward. Last month, the city and county agreed to split the $241,000 cost of creating the Recovery Enables a Life for Men program.
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Known as REALM, this new offering will provide comprehensive, evidence-based residential treatment focusing on the substance abuse needs of up to 40 male offenders each year.
Currently, the city and county councils are considering jointly investing a total of $502,925 into two proposals.
One involves transforming ASAP from a government/health care alliance into an ongoing entity as a 501(C)(3) nonprofit corporation beginning next year.
The other proposal would create the Hub, a resource center where addicted individuals can find assistance and guidance tailored to their needs. If approved, the Hub is expected to serve at least 1,000 clients annually at the former United Way office in the Doug Otto Center, 1531 13th St., Columbus.
Together, these programs will result in the creation of five positions: ASAP executive director, ASAP operations and communications manager, hub manager, volunteer services manager and recovery specialist, ASAP executive lead Jeff Jones said.
About 76 percent of the money now being requested ($382,485) will go toward staffing, with the remaining 24 percent ($120,430) earmarked for facility costs, Jones said.
After both proposals were endorsed by two public funding organizations, the Columbus City Council gave its preliminary first-reading approval to funding half of the costs last week.
However, city officials want assurances the county will pay the other half before a final vote on the matter is held in December, said Ferdon, who is the city’s executive director of administration and community development.
In response, the county council gave Ferdon an informal consensus that indicates unanimous support. The county council cannot officially vote to fund those two programs until Dec. 11, when an interlocal agreement will be presented, council attorney Chris Monroe said.
At the request of county council president Mark Gorbett, Ferdon provided what she called round-number estimates of the next two anticipated expenses the city and county will be asked to share within the coming months.
Bartholomew Circuit Court Judge Kelly Benjamin is expected to make the fourth request — about $150,000 for a Drug Court within the next month or two, Ferdon said.
The fifth and final request will be for about $200,000 for the Fresh Start Recovery program, a 23-bed residential facility providing addiction treatment for expectant women and mothers. Fresh Start is scheduled to open early next year in the former post office building at 703 Washington St.
Although these programs are viewed as successes, efforts to provide safe and drug-free housing for recovering addicts in Bartholomew County has become a difficult challenge, Jones said.
“That may be our biggest gap at this point with no major solutions identified right now,” Jones said.
Since its inception in April 2017, ASAP has launched 31 of the 41 projects it has introduced. About half of the new programs are expected to be completed by May, Jones said.
Although the county could be asked to fund about $550,000 for ASAP proposals, it has already set aside $693,175 in next year’s budget for such purposes, county auditor Barb Hackman said.
The requests for the drug court and Fresh Start have not yet received the endorsement of two public funding organizations. Like earlier proposals, they will need favorable recommendations from the Substance Abuse Advisory and Accountability Committee, followed by the Substance Abuse Public Funding Board, before they are considered by elected councils.
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With taxpayers expected to pay over $1 million to address opioid and other drug additions, Bartholomew County Council member Matt Miller asked Tuesday how the effectiveness of programs brought forth by the Alliance for Substance Abuse Progress (ASAP) can be measured.
In response, ASAP Executive Lead Jeff Jones provided several possible ways of determining effectiveness that include:
- Coroner data on deaths caused by overdoses
- First responder data on the number of opioid antidote applications.
- Measuring of recidivism rates among participants in court-ordered drug treatment programs.
- Fresh Start Recovery success measures
- Recovery Housing capacity
- Hub customer satisfaction
- Student participation in LifeSkills curriculum.
- Attendance at Smart Recovery meetings
- Teens and young adults reached via social media.
- Survey results
It will be the responsibility of the Substance Abuse Advisory and Accountability Committee to determine the effectiveness of each individual program, ASAP senior advisor Mary Ferdon said.
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