National strategy recommendations

Expand Rural Opioid Technical Regional Centers

Parity, Coverage, & Equitable Access
Topics
No items found.
social determinants of health
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Population
Rural Communities
Coverage & Standards
No items found.
Federal department
Health and Human Services
house committees
No items found.
senate committees
No items found.

Recommendation

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) should expand the scope of their Rural Opioid Technical Regional Centers (ROTA-R), which are currently only focused on opioids, to include other substance use and mental health.

Background/summary

There are 10 ROTA-Rs, each located in one of the ten Health and Human Services Agency regions, whose purpose is to develop and disseminate training and technical assistance addressing opioid use in rural communities. ROTA-Rs identify model programs, and create and update materials related to prevention, treatment, recovery, and harm reduction activities for opioid and stimulant use. The centers have also expanded to include stimulant use disorders, which include methamphetamine use.[1] ROTA-Rs should be expanded to include other substance use and mental health disorders affecting rural communities, including alcohol use disorder, serious mental illnesses, and suicide prevention.

citations

1. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. “Rural Opioid Technical Assistance Regional Centers (ROTA-R).” Last Accessed February 1, 2023.

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