PHOENIX – Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced today the Arizona Attorney General’s Office (AGO) has awarded $6 million in grant funding to eleven organizations across the state to combat the opioid crisis. The funding will be used to support opioid abuse and underlying mental health-related issues for more than 21,000 children, pregnant women and mothers, veterans, and underserved communities.
"We are quickly moving more resources to assist Arizonans who have been devastated by the opioid crisis," said General Brnovich. "The organizations receiving grants are on the front lines of this fight and doing great work to support affected families and communities."
The grants will provide funding to services in Maricopa, Pima, and Pinal counties. The following groups were awarded grants:
- US Vets Phoenix – $600,000
- 250 unhoused and housing-insecure veterans will receive prevention and treatment services for opioid use disorder (OUD), other substance use disorders, and/or mental illness.
- Boys & Girls Club of the Valley (Maricopa and Pinal County) – $599,932
- 6,000 Club members ages 5-17 attending one of 27 Clubs will receive education to discourage and prevent the misuse of opioids.
- Maggie’s Place – $599,632
- 130 homeless pregnant or parenting women of babies with OUD and co-occurring substance use disorder (SUD)/mental health conditions will be treated, along with babies with neonatal abstinence syndrome, in Maricopa County.
- Banner Health Foundation (STARC) – $599,479
- 2,950 individuals and family members/caregivers in rural Pinal County communities will be provided OUD/SUD telehealth services by addiction medicine experts.
- Banner Health Foundation (FC-NAS) – $599,328
- 1,020 expectant mothers and mothers with newborns with OUD will be treated with a family-centered neonatal abstinence program (FC-NAS) in Maricopa, Pinal, and Pima counties.
- Neighborhood Outreach Access to Health (NOAH) – $597,186
- 6,000 individuals with SUD/OUD/co-occurring mental health disorders living in Phoenix, Glendale, and Scottsdale will be treated, including individuals with very low incomes and without insurance.
- Valley Hope Foundation – $579,700
- 950 adults with OUD will be treated at the Chandler and Tempe treatment facilities. Grant funding will help pay treatment costs for individuals without insurance or underinsured as well as additional staffing.
- Amity Foundation – $570,933
- 12 additional individuals will be treated for OUD at the Pima County facility as a result of increased bed space from the grant. Addicted individuals stay for 30 days to 7 months. 80% of patients are Native American, and patients are allowed to bring children with them to treatment.
- HonorHealth – $444,270
- 300 individuals impacted by the opioid crisis will receive treatments and services through the Addiction Medicine Fellowship program which supports people in treatment and recovery from OUD.
- Boys & Girls Club of the Sun Corridor (Pinal County) – $329,127
- 2,375 Pinal County youth, including 1,175 students in local schools and 1,200 club members, will receive education designed to prevent and discourage young people from using opioids.
- Pinal Hispanic Council – $276,831
- 550 Pinal County families and/or community residents will participate in programs and education efforts designed to support loved ones with opioid users in the family. The money will also direct treatment resources to addicted individuals, as well as educate the community on how to prevent misuse of opioids and proper disposal of the drugs.
- Boys & Girls Club of Tucson – $254,661
- 1,080 Club members ages 5-17 in Pima County will receive education on how to avoid abusing opioids and other dangerous substances.
"Maggie's Place is grateful for the investment from the Attorney General's Office," said Laura Magruder, CEO of Maggie's Place. "These funds allow us to walk alongside our mothers through pregnancy and beyond. For over twenty years Maggie's Place has been providing housing and direct services promoting stability, resiliency, and healthy families."
Banner Health Foundation will receive more than $1 million in grant funding.
“We are grateful to be awarded these important funds to help address opioid use disorder in some of our most vulnerable populations here in Arizona, including mothers and newborn babies and those living in rural communities who may lack access and resources,” says Andy Kramer Petersen, President & CEO of the Banner Health Foundation. “As Arizona’s largest health system, Banner Health has been at the forefront of this crisis, first through the Banner Poison & Drug Information Line and now, through these innovative new programs to support those most in need of help and recovery. These funds will help us to save countless lives.”
The grant funds come as a result of the AGO’s February 2021 settlement with McKinsey & Company, which resolved investigations into the company’s role in helping fuel the opioid crisis. As a result of this settlement, the AGO also provided $4.5 million in grant funding to treat addiction and mental health in the criminal justice system and awarded $1.5 million to three non-profits to provide opioid abuse education, treatment, and prevention for individuals living in rural communities.