Health Department seeks to expand recovery residences and embed outreach staff in shelters

Rick Helderbrandt, Commissioner of the Department of Health, told the committee that housing is a public‑health priority for people with substance use disorder and outlined the department’s role in a continuum that includes residential treatment, recovery residences and recovery shelters.

Emily Truder (Health Department substance‑use program lead) provided capacity details: "we have 99 active high intensity beds" and 49 active low intensity beds in residential treatment, serving roughly 1,500 unique individuals annually; she said average high‑intensity stays are around 15 days and low‑intensity stays averaged 37 days in 2024 with projections to rise. Truder and the commissioner cited re‑engagement beds and aftercare planning as ways to reduce discharges to homelessness.

On recovery housing, the department reported 155 recovery‑residence beds across 30 locations and set a capacity goal of 400 beds statewide. Officials said they seek $1.2 million from opioid abatement settlement funds and noted Rural Health Transformation and other pools as potential funding sources; the department also described embedding 26 outreach and engagement positions and recovery coaches across provider catchments and emergency housing sites.

Members asked for clarity on what the FY27 budget would change about existing bed counts and whether expansion plans included new licensed treatment capacity or primarily operational support for recovery housing and outreach. Health Department officials said recent residential expansions are currently meeting demand and the FY27 proposals focus on sustaining and expanding recovery‑oriented housing and outreach capacity.