Rural Opioid Efforts

NCHQA is using its longstanding experience to collaborate with health care organizations and support providers in addressing the opioid crisis in our state, particularly rural providers with limited resources.

In 2018, NCHQA convened stakeholders from around the state to review and create simple protocols and resources for providers to address chronic and acute pain, recognizing the changing landscape for providers after passage of the STOP ACT. Participating organizations included the Division of Public Health, the NC Community Health Centers Association, the NC Healthcare Association, the State Health Plan, the NC Psychiatric Association, Community Care of North Carolina, Cardinal Innovations, Eastpointe, AHEC, Area L AHEC, and NCHQA.

In July 2018, NCHQA began working with Area L AHEC and their practice support coaches to implement these protocols and resources in Edgecombe, Halifax, Nash, and Northampton Counties. These efforts will continue over a three-year period and NCHQA will continue to provide community and state-level coordination.
In June of 2020, NCHQA received funding from a Rural Communities Opioid Response Planning (RCORP) Grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to expand access to prevention, treatment, and recovery resources in Edgecombe, Halifax, and Northampton counties.

In August of 2022, NCHQA received funding from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) via the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Abuse Services (DMH/DD/SAS) to continue to expand treatment capacity in the many northeastern counties already being served as a part of the HRSA RCORP grant, and to reduce the financial barrier to medication assisted treatment for the patients suffering from substance use disorder in those counties.

As of 2023, the consortium formed by NCHQA in partnership with Area L AHEC services an area of over 287,305 residents across six service sites. In the final quarter of 2022 and the first quarter of 2023 alone, over 4,500 patients received direct services for substance use disorder, and at least 200 distinct overdose deaths were prevented. In addition to the consortium’s incredible direct impact on the healthcare outcomes of these communities, the RCORP and SAMHSA grants have enabled significant education for community members and physicians alike, reducing stigma and making treatment safer for everyone.