Law Enforcement, Peers and Tech Providers Urge State Funding to Sustain Deflection and Quick Response Teams

Leaders of Ohio's quick response and deflection programs, backed by a software vendor, told the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee that state seed funding is required to sustain teams that connect people with substance use disorder to treatment and services.

Why it matters: Witnesses said deflection and QRTs reduce overdose deaths, cut related crime and generate fiscal savings to Medicaid and emergency departments. They urged the Legislature to include a recurring appropriation in the budget so local teams do not lapse when federal grants end.

What witnesses said: Dan Malloy, president of the Ohio Deflection Association and a retired police chief, traced the model's growth since 2013 and asked lawmakers to renew an $3,000,000‑level appropriation he said helped start teams in 2017. "Please allow us to sustain what we've been built," Malloy said.

Tom Fallon, who described himself as executive director of the Ohio Deflection Association and legislative chair of the Ohio Task Force Commanders, told the committee QRTs and related task forces have documented large numbers of interactions and referrals. Fallon cited internal analyses showing tens of thousands of interactions and said Montgomery County data show lives saved and lower crime. He urged support for a budget amendment introduced by a senator.

Cordata Healthcare, a vendor providing the core data platform used by many teams, described how time‑limited federal grants force infrastructure and license payments into uncertain cycles. Gary Windsor Reed, president and CEO, told the committee that Ohio's data platform helps teams coordinate care and measure outcomes and that stable state funding would preserve the network and allow better planning.

Fiscal claims and evidence: Panelists cited numbers from regional studies and platform reports: tens of thousands of documented interactions since program launch, thousands of referrals to treatment, and asserted per‑client savings to Medicaid and emergency care (testifiers cited $17,000 per client for one interaction and larger sums for repeat engagement). Committee staff will need to verify these calculations; witnesses offered Montgomery County and statewide core data as sources.

Operational and policy points: Witnesses emphasized the multidisciplinary nature of teams (law enforcement, fire, EMS, peers, behavioral health) and requested recurring, predictable state support to avoid the boom‑and‑bust cycle of grant funding that disrupts staffing and services.

Next steps: Testimony requested that the Senate consider a budget amendment to create a continuing appropriation at levels described by witnesses and to preserve funding for the statewide data platform that enables program evaluation.