Regional opioid outreach fund helps COG-affiliated outreach worker save a veteran—s life, presenter says

Julia Jagger, a social worker and outreach worker at Green/West Counseling Referrals, told the Northwest Hills County COG that funding from the Regional Opioid Response Fund (RORF) supports rapid response and transportation assistance that are critical in rural communities.

Why it matters: Jagger said overdose deaths have fallen regionally but non-fatal overdoses remain common, with fentanyl and xylazine changing the risk profile and complicating treatment and outreach. RORF-funded services help outreach workers reach clients quickly, coordinate with first responders and arrange transportation to treatment or services.

Case example: Jagger described an incident in which outreach staff engaged a veteran in his 70s who was sleeping outdoors. Using RORF-supported outreach capacity, staff coordinated with unhoused outreach partners and the VA, checked on the man repeatedly and eventually, after an injury, worked with trained first responders to get him to a hospital where he was then transferred to a VA facility and received care; a hospital clinician told staff that the man likely would not have survived without the rapid intervention.

Other RORF-supported activities: Jagger said the program supports community screenings of the film "Operating Addiction" and that several libraries and towns have expressed interest in similar public events. She emphasized that local transportation barriers make the fund especially valuable in small towns.

What was not decided: This was a presentation to inform the board; no funding changes were proposed at the meeting.