Increasing access to medication-assisted treatment (MAT) in the nation’s jails—where more than 60 percent of individuals have a substance use disorder—is the goal of the Building Bridges initiative. The Institute for Intergovernmental Research has released a solicitation for applications on behalf of the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). This webinar will provide detailed information on this solicitation.
BJA, in partnership with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, will lead the support for this 9-month planning initiative to help communities develop a comprehensive continuum of care that targets individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD) in jails and builds bridges to increase access to treatment both in custody and with community-based MAT providers upon release. Under this solicitation, up to 15 communities will be selected to participate in the planning initiative.
The ultimate goal of this initiative is to get people who are incarcerated in local jails the care they need to treat their OUD, reduce risk of overdose and overdose death, reduce recidivism, and increase engagement in evidence-based OUD treatment by developing a continuum of care for individuals in jail and in the community post-release.