Louisville Named a Community Partner in National Initiative
to Increase Treatment for Substance Use Disorders
Boston, MA -- Join Together, a national resource for communities
taking action against substance abuse, announced today that
Louisville is one of fourteen communities selected to join
its Demand Treatment! program.
Demand Treatment! is Join Together's national initiative
to increase the number of people getting quality treatment
for substance use disorders by building local leadership,
providing information for action, improving quality, and
ending discrimination. Join Together is supported by the
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
As part of its Demand Treatment! initiative, The Healing
Place will expand an existing peer intervention model
used at the University of Louisville Hospital to help families
of hospitalized patients with drug or alcohol problems.
For nine years, The Healing Place has provided a
recovery program and continuum of care for homeless addicts
and alcoholics. David Armstrong, mayor of Louisville, said,
"We look forward to joining the efforts of Join Together
and the Demand Treatment! project to promote the awareness
of and need for resources for the alcoholic and drug addict."
The 2002 Demand Treatment! Partners were selected from
more than 50 competing applicants across the nation. Join
Together will provide them with technical assistance, funding,
and leadership development over the next two years.
The other new communities selected to join the initiative
are: Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery Counties and
Philadelphia, PA; Carroll County, MD; Everett, MA; Gallatin
County, MT; Genesee County, MI; James City and York Counties
and Williamsburg, VA; Lancaster County, NE; Milwaukee County,
WI; Monroe County, NY; Sacramento County, CA; San Diego
County, CA; Sarasota County, FL; and Washoe County, NV.
These fourteen communities join the 2001 Demand Treatment!
Partners: Boise, Chicago, Denver, Des Moines (IA), Houston,
Indianapolis, Knoxville, Manchester (NH), Mobile, Nashville,
Pittsburgh, San Antonio, San Francisco, Trenton (NJ) and
Tucson.
"Too many people fail to get the treatment they need because
they don't think it will work, or fear they will be fired
or forced out of their homes," said David Rosenbloom, director
of Join Together. "We are very pleased that these fourteen
communities will join us as we demand that the health, criminal
justice and specialized treatment systems be expanded and
improved."
Join Together is a project of the Boston University School
of Public Health. For more information about Join Together
or Demand Treatment!, visit: www.jointogether.org
Media Contacts--For Join Together: Anara Guard, Director
of Information, 617-437-1500; anara@jointogether.org
For The Healing Place: Mike Barry, 502-357-1973; mike@angelprograms.org
