(COLUMBUS, Ohio)— Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced today that a pilot program to serve families harmed by parental opioid abuse in southern Ohio will expand to serve residents in four additional counties, bringing the total number of counties participating in the program to 18.
Attorney General DeWine announced the creation of the Ohio START (Sobriety, Treatment, and Reducing Trauma) program last month. The program will provide specialized victim services to children who have been abused or neglected due to parental drug use. It will also provide drug treatment for parents of children referred to the program.
Adams, Brown, Lawrence, and Scioto are the newest counties that will receive grant funds to bring Ohio START to their communities.
"I'm very glad Adams, Brown, Lawrence, and Scioto counties have joined this project," said Attorney General DeWine. "The goal of this program is to stabilize families harmed by parental drug use so that both kids and parents can recover and move forward with abuse-free and addiction-free lives."
Because more counties are now participating in Ohio START, Attorney General DeWine allotted an additional $1 million in Victim of Crime Act grants to the program. The Public Children Services Association of Ohio, which is administering the grants on behalf of each county, will now receive a total of $4,595,250 to launch the southern Ohio pilot program across all 18 counties.
The other counties involved in the southern Ohio pilot program are: Athens, Clermont, Clinton, Fairfield, Fayette, Gallia, Highland, Jackson, Perry, Pickaway, Pike, Hocking, Ross, and Vinton.
If shown to be successful, Ohio START could expand to more counties in other regions of the state.
More information on Ohio START can be found here.
Media Contacts:
Dan Tierney: 614-466-3840
Jill Del Greco: 614-466-3840