Sheriff’s office expands opioid drug treatment program at Buncombe County Detention Facility

Press release from Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office:

The Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office is offering new medical treatment options for individuals with opioid use disorder at the Buncombe County Detention Facility (BCDF). The program utilizes medication-assisted treatment (MAT) to help inmates start the road to long-term recovery.
Last summer the North Carolina DHHS awarded a $283,000 grant to fund this program launch. Only 1 percent of jails or prisons across the country offer MAT programs according to a study by the Pew Charitable Trust.
“So many people in our community are feeling the pain of this crisis and we need to respond with a multi-pronged strategy that includes expanding access to MAT. The launch of this program is an important step in our community – it means more people will get the treatment they need and deserve. Addiction is a disease that can be treated and MAT is considered a standard of care that can save lives and help reduce rates of recidivism, overdoses, and hospitalization,” says Buncombe County Commissioner Jasmine Beach-Ferrara.
Previously only pregnant inmates at the BCDF were offered medication as part of the recovery process. Others who came into the facility on medications, such as methadone, were tapered off their medication through a process called medical detox. Now individuals with prescriptions will have the opportunity to continue their medication while detained at the BCDF as part of the MAT program. Additionally, inmates diagnosed with opioid use disorder will be evaluated for referral to the MAT program that includes medication, substance abuse recovery counseling, and other psycho-education classes that will be offered to program participants.
“This expansion of services is in response to the needs of those detained – specifically those impacted by opioid addiction. Supporting detained individuals in their recovery from opioid use has widespread positive impacts throughout our community. The process of recovery takes time and this MAT program offers individuals the opportunity for recovery advancement during their time served,” says Sarah Gayton, Community Integration and MAT Services Director at the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office.
According to a study titled “Opioid Overdose Mortality Among Former North Carolina Inmates: 2000–2015”, inmates across North Carolina are 40 times more likely to overdose on opioids after release from jail or prison. Once an opioid user’s drug tolerance has decreased after being incarcerated they are at high risk if they use again.  In 2018, there were 88 opioid-related, registered deaths in Buncombe County and 46 of those individuals had been booked into the BCDF at some point. These new findings are a result of a joint research project between The Register of Deeds’ Office, Buncombe County HHS and the Sheriff’s Office.
Providing this MAT program in a detention setting has proven successful in other communities according to a 2018 report on MAT produced by the National Sheriff’s Association lays out the clear benefits of the program: “Evidence strongly supports that the use of MAT increases the likelihood of successful treatment for individuals with OUDs and reduces morbidity and mortality. Research has begun to show that adding MAT to the treatment of those involved in the criminal justice system confers the same benefits and also reduces recidivism.”
“I’m proud to have a dedicated and hard-working team working within our Detention Facility to help make a difference with the opioid crisis. We’ve tried to arrest our way out of the drug epidemic for decades and it hasn’t worked. There must be consequences for people’s actions, but part of our solution has to be providing people access to medication and treatment. We must offer people a chance to get themselves to a better place and programs like MAT are proven to reduce recidivism,” says Buncombe County Sheriff Quentin Miller.
The BCDF is also starting distribution of Naloxone kits to individuals self-reporting opioid use. These kits are in accordance with North Carolina Health and Human Services recommendations.
The MAT program builds on the foundation of Buncombe County’s strategic response to the opioids epidemic, including harm reduction, peer support and post-overdose response. Buncombe County Health and Human Services has operated a successful Syringe Services Program since August of 2019, with the assistance of Peer Support services through Sunrise Community for Recovery and Wellness. Evidence-based public health strategies such as syringe services and exchange programs offer opportunities for healthier outcomes by providing testing, sterile injection equipment; linkages to care and recovery options; and Naloxone, an overdose-reversal drug that can save the life of a person experiencing an opioid overdose.
More information on harm reduction and treatment is available at: www.buncombecounty.org/safer