St. Charles County paramedics receive $1.5 million grant to lessen barriers to substance use treatment

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (KMOV) - Local paramedics are getting a new resource to fight an ever-growing epidemic.

The opioid crisis has ravaged so many lives in the bi-state and now the St. Charles County Ambulance District(SCCAD) is taking a new approach in an effort to save lives.

Thanks to $1.5 million in grant money from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration(SAMHSA), the ambulance district will be able to offer medicine to treat opioid withdrawals immediately after treating an overdose at the scene.

How substance users fall through the cracks under the current system

The move can mean the difference between a user seeking treatment or continuing illicit substance use. The ambulance district will also use the money to partner with area hospitals to offer substance use help for anyone who comes to an emergency department to seek treatment.

SCCAD started the Substance Use Recovery Response Team in 2017 after the contamination of fentanyl caused an increase in overdoses in the region. Earlier this year, First Alert 4 highlighted the toll the overdose crisis takes on paramedics and what it has cost families after a loved one dies of an overdose.

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