By: Maria – Paula
Virginia Opioid Abatement Authority, OAA, the body charged with financing settlements between the state of Virginia, opioid manufacturers and distributors announced its first grant award of $115,970 to Washington County for a women center.
The organization that foresees the allocation of more than a half billion in settlements declared its support for the development of the 54-bed capacity, Mended Women Lifestyle Recovery Center. The facility located near downtown Abingdon will provide post-detox and early recovery services to women from 13 counties and 3 cities across Southwest Virginia.
“Every community in Virginia has been impacted by the opioid crisis, and my office will continue to demand accountability from those who profited,” said Attorney General Jason Miyares in a press release ahead of the Thursday, April 13, 2023, opening of the facility.
The institution has finalized more than $500 million in agreements for settlements to be redeemed over 18 years with a potential for a doubling of the amount following more anticipated settlement agreements. The county contributed $200,000 received directly from the settlements as the Wellspring Foundation donated $200,000, while Smyth committed $24,072 from its direct settlement funds. Additional financial support was provided by Abingdon Baptist Church, the Genan Foundation, the Vanguard Charitable Fund, Emory United Methodist Church, and other private donors.
Senator Todd Pillion (R) of Washington County, also the chairman of the Opioid Abatement Authority, called the grant “a great start,” since there were no such facilities for women within 150 miles of the site of the new center.
“We are so pleased that Washington County and its partners are addressing such a significant gap. Once again, a community in Southwest Virginia is setting the standard for the rest of the state by being the first in Virginia to apply and get approval for such a grant,” said Pillion in a statement.
The project is a collaboration between Washington County and the long-standing non-profit, Fairview Housing Management Corporation, which also operates other such centers for adult male in Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee.
Dr. Sarah Melton, the chair of OAA’s grants committee, praised the collaborative approach that Washington County took to its grant application from within.
She said that they brought so many partners together from the community as part of this application, adding that this kind of collaboration provides confidence that these funds are being put to the best possible use.
With the facility’s existence being a reality, the pending questions are;
1. Will the lack of existing services for women in Southwest Virginia make it difficult to estimate the number of women affected by substance abuse disorders in the region?
2. Is there a good chance the facility will operate in full capacity shortly after it opens?
The General Assembly in 2021 created the OAA to abate and remediate the opioid epidemic in the community through grants, donations, or other assistance to prevent, treat and reduce opioid misuse disorder in the Commonwealth.