State leaders in Russell discuss opioid epidemic in rural areas

Senator John velis who chairs The legislature's Joint Committee on Mental Health substance use and Recovery held a Roundtable discussion this morning aimed at addressing the rise in overdoses 22 news reporter M Tores spoke with vist on why rural communities are disproportionately impacted by substance use disorders well Nick Senator vas came together with elected officials and Community stakeholders to discuss these Trends in rural communities with those who see firsthand how substance use disorders in impact people in their everyday lives we're seeing an uptick in rural communities and the reality is is that the drug addiction crisis impacts different regions of the Commonwealth in different ways Monday's Roundtable discussion in the town of Russell was meant to focus on how the state can support individuals that are affected by substance use and those who directly provide them life-saving services and we need to hear from the rural communities the rural providers about what are the limiting factors what are the biggest impediments to them being able to treat people in the best way possible to get folks back on their feet the data from this discussion will be used to create a substance use disorder bill that addresses the disparities that rural communities currently face when it comes to accessibility transportation is an issue here so someone who really needs help might not be able to let's say methodone clinic right they might not be able to get there right and you have to go there every single day rural communities also lack the accessibility to providers in comparison to Urban and Suburban areas within the Commonwealth vs wants to see if they can create more access so that everyone can get the support that they need on the path to recovery vs firmly believes that in order to tackle this issue head-on we need to understand that overdose crisis defers in every Community within the Commonwealth working for you melis sores 22 News