The University of Cincinnati will get $1.35 million from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for training students to treat patients struggling with addiction, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown announced Aug. 15.Â
The federal funds, which come from a $70 million pool awarded to 64 programs this year by the Opioid Workforce Expansion Program, are focused on trainings for future community health workers, social workers, post-doctoral residents and others focused on opioid and other addictions. The award to UC will go to programs that train students pursuing degrees in behavioral health.
Ohio has been one of the states hardest-hit by the nation’s opioid addiction epidemic. In 2017, the state had the highest rate of overdose deaths in the country. The 4,293 overdose deaths in the Buckeye State that year equate to 39.2 deaths per 100,000 people — well more than double the national rate of 14.2 per 100,000.
“We must do everything in our power to fight this crisis on all fronts,” Brown said in a statement. “This federal funding will provide a critical investment in the training of healthcare professionals at institutions all across the state to better prevent and treat addiction through traditional and creative approaches.” Â
This article appears in Aug 14-21, 2019.
