Guilford County– in cooperation with several partners– is working to develop a 70- to 100-bed long-term drug rehab center to fulfill a requirement that the Guilford County Board of Commissioners has actually gone over for years. Chairman of the Board of Commissioners Avoid Alston informed the Rhino Times on Tuesday, Nov. 15 that this is a vital county require that will be part of the county’s bigger effort to deal with the issue of homelessness.
Alston stated the main advantage of the coming rehab center is that it will have long-term beds.
According to the chairman, one issue with present rehab options in Guilford County is that, in numerous cases, stays are minimal to 28 days or less.
” That’s not long enough,” Alston stated, including that a facility able to help people for longer durations will lower the opportunity of their relapsing into addiction.
The chairman stated the rehab center requires to be developed “ASAP” due to the seriousness of the drug addiction and homelessness issue in Guilford County.
He likewise stated that he and other county authorities are engaging in talks with Wake County and other city governments to gain from their experiences in longer-term rehab programs for drug addicts and mental health patients.
Alston stated the entire community should come together to make the center asuccess He stated he desires the collaboration to consist of location city governments, Cone Health, community companies, social services staff and others.
Guilford County commissioners have actually discussed this requirement for such a facility for years– with those discussions frequently being led by Guilford County Commissioner Kay Cashion. She has actually often been a strong supporter for much higher mental health and drug rehab services in Guilford County.
Though Cashion, Alston and numerous other commissioners have actually talked about this requirement for years, Guilford County now has a lot of cash in the bank for unique jobs. That’s due to increasing residential or commercial property worths, inbound cash from the national claim by regional and state federal governments versus the opioid market, and federal cash from the American Rescue Plan Act.
Alston stated county authorities are checking out several financing sources for the new center that’s suggested to fight drug addiction, homelessness and mental health issues.