Comprehensive Treatment Centers (CTC), a national provider of medication-assisted treatment, presented to the board Nov. 6 a proposal to open an outpatient opioid treatment clinic in St. Clair County funded in part by opioid-settlement seed money.

CTC representatives described their services — FDA-approved medications (buprenorphine/Suboxone, methadone, naltrexone), counseling, case management and wraparound supports — and cited national and state data showing reductions in overdose deaths, recidivism and health-care costs for patients who enter treatment programs. The presenters said CTC operates clinics in Michigan and nationally, works with county jails and hospital systems and offers transportation, telehealth and flexible appointment hours to reduce barriers to care.

CTC requested seed funding for capital costs and two years of operating support to establish local services, describing this as a one-time use of opioid-settlement funds to create sustainable operations that would later rely on Medicaid, private insurance and patient revenue. Presenters projected that, over several years, a local clinic could serve two to three hundred regular patients; they said revenue from billing Medicaid, commercial insurance and private pay would support ongoing operations after the seed period.

Commissioners asked about local capacity, competing providers, projected patient counts and what would happen if ongoing revenue fell short. Presenters noted there are no inpatient treatment centers in the county and that revenues from billing would be used for continuing operations after seed funding ends. Several commissioners requested copies of the presentation materials and more detailed financial projections before deciding on whether to allocate settlement dollars.

The board did not vote to allocate funds on Nov. 6. Commissioners thanked the presenters and asked staff to provide the PowerPoint and a more detailed budget and operational plan for follow-up review.