Ohio Launches Mobile Addiction Treatment Units for Rural Counties
Ohio officials today unveiled the state’s first Mobile Medication Units (MMUs) designed to deliver opioid addiction treatment directly to underserved rural communities, a move aimed at addressing disparities in access to critical care.
Despite a decline in overall overdose deaths, Ohio recorded 4,452 fatalities in 2023, with rural areas experiencing the highest rates. The MMUs, a collaboration between the Ohio Department of Behavioral Health, Anchor Addiction and Wellness Center, and the Paint Valley Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Board, will serve seven counties currently lacking sufficient treatment options. This initiative comes as opioid addiction continues to strain healthcare systems and communities nationwide.
“Here in Ohio, we do have the third highest number of opioid treatment programs in the country,” stated Jordan Knipper, the State Opioid Treatment Administrator. “However, we do have significant geographic regions, especially here in southeast Ohio, which have very limited and in often cases no access to opioid treatment programs.” Currently, 51 of Ohio’s 88 counties are classified as rural or underserved, yet host only 32 of the state’s 129 opioid treatment providers, according to data from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The MMUs will be staffed with nurses, doctors qualified to administer addiction medication, security personnel, and a driver, and will operate on a flexible route to reach areas with the greatest need.
Anchor president James Leman described the MMUs as “treatment clinics on wheels,” anticipating they will cost the state a similar amount to operate as traditional brick-and-mortar locations. Officials estimate the units will treat approximately 200 residents in their first year. For more information on Ohio’s response to the opioid crisis, visit the Ohio Department of Administrative Services Opioid Resource Center.
The MMUs are expected to improve overdose death rates in rural areas, bringing them in line with the progress seen in more urban parts of the state, according to Knipper.
