Siskiyou Community Health Center Receives $223,522 Grant from Health Resources and Services Administration

Grants Pass, OR –The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) awarded more than $392 million to health centers, academic institutions, and rural organizations to combat the opioid crisis in communities across the U.S. Siskiyou Community Health Center (SCHC) received $223,522 of those funds.

Siskiyou Community Health Center will use the funds for the expansion of mental health services, substance abuse services, medication assistant treatment, and to promote integration of these services. These services focus on the treatment, prevention, and awareness of opioid abuse in the primary care setting by increasing personnel, leveraging health information technology, and providing training. “Siskiyou Community Health Center is honored to be one of the health centers chosen for this grant. We are already screening for mental health and substance abuse problems in our clinics, but this funding will help patients access needed services when issues are identified,” said SCHC Chief Medical Officer Kristin Miller, M.D.

The funding is part of the Department of Health and Human Services’ five-point strategy to fight the opioid epidemic by:

Improving access to treatment and recovery services.
Targeting use of overdose-reversing drugs.
Strengthening our understanding of the epidemic through better public health surveillance.
Providing support for cutting-edge research on pain and addiction.
Advancing better practices for pain management.

Already, Siskiyou Community Health Center has partnered with various local organizations to provide community Naloxone education and training. Naloxone reverses the effects of an overdose caused by opioids. This new funding will support programs like this and many others.

Siskiyou Community Health Center is a private, not-for-profit, equal opportunity provider and employer. As a federally qualified health center, SCHC is able to offer a sliding fee scale for patients with no insurance. For those with insurance, SCHC accepts most insurance plans including the Oregon Health Plan and Medicare.