This publication by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant, and Substance Abuse Program (COSSAP) discusses projects that are part of the Rural Responses to the Opioid Epidemic (RROE) project.
This brief discusses the Rural Responses to the Opioid Epidemic (RROE) project, co-funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the State Justice Institute. The RROE project supports 21 rural sites across the country to develop or enhance efforts to strengthen epidemiologic surveillance and public health data infrastructure; implement effective community-level opioid overdose prevention activities; and establish or enhance public safety, public health, and behavioral health collaborations. Sites may also expand peer recovery and recovery support services that help people start and stay in recovery. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, 85 percent of the prison population has an active substance use disorder (SUD) or are incarcerated for a crime involving drugs or drug use. Inmates with opioid use disorder (OUD) are at a higher risk for overdose following release from incarceration. To combat the rising numbers of individuals with SUD, jails across the country have begun implementing jail-based programming to help incarcerated individuals as they seek recovery, reduce recidivism, and reduce the chances of overdose upon release. Program sites highlighted are Grays Harbor County Public Health and Social Services in Washington State and Franklin County Sheriff’s Office in Massachusetts.