Please go to the Portland Press Herald to read this article.  The number of adults getting treatment has nearly doubled since the state expanded the health care program, and wait times are swelling. By: Joe Lawlor Greg Lavertu at his home in Rumford earlier this month. Lavertu, one of the Mainers newly covered by Medicaid expansion, is now able to have the medication he needs for his schizophrenia diagnosis and can see a therapist once a week. “They let me fall through the cracks ... Read More ›

Please go to the Bangor Daily News to read the full article.  By: Charles Eichacker ~~Excerpt A drug and alcohol detoxification center that opened in Hampden two years ago has recently expanded its services in a way that could help more people inside and outside the Bangor region get into recovery. When New Horizons Detox Center opened at the start of 2018, the 10-bed facility was only able to serve patients who were referred to it by the emergency departments of Bangor’s two ... Read More ›

Please go to The Piscataquis Observer to read the full article.  By: Staff ~~Excerpt WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine and Angus King, I-Maine announced that the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Distance Learning and Telemedicine Program has awarded a total of $2,181,629 to several rural healthcare organizations and educational institutions throughout Maine. The funds will help six Maine organizations expand their online services, allowing them to ... Read More ›

Please go to The County to read the full article.  Krystal Griffiths and Andrea Chasse (Courtesy of AMHC) By: Contributed ~~ Excerpt CARIBOU Maine — Aroostook Mental Health Center (AMHC) has announced the addition of Krystal Griffiths, LMSW-CC, and Andrea Chasse, LMSW-CC, to its central Aroostook service area. “AMHC is so pleased to have Krystal and Andrea joining our growing team of professionals,” said Lorraine Chamberlain, director of integration and behavioral health in ... Read More ›

Please go to The Maine Beacon to read the full article.  By: Dan Neumann ~~Excerpt The number of people who have enrolled in the state’s Medicaid system, MaineCare, which Mainers voted to expand in 2017, reached 40,770 this month. Within that group, according to the latest tally released by Maine’s Department of Health and Human Services, are 5,752 individuals who are now receiving treatment for substance use disorder who were not prior to Medicaid expansion. “Expansion is working ... Read More ›

Please go to Pine Tree Watch to read the full article.  Maine will need an estimated $2 billion by 2030 to treat and care for opioid-affected children By: Barbara Walsh ~~Excerpt Babies withdrawing from opiates. Children watching their parents shoot up heroin. Orphans growing up in foster care. They are the opioid epidemic’s youngest victims. Nationally, an estimated 2.2 million children and adolescents were in crisis as of 2017 — 28 out of every 1,000. According to The Ripple ... Read More ›

The Maine Juvenile Justice System Assessment and Reinvestment Task Force is studying how our state responds to youth in the juvenile justice system and will be recommending ways that Maine can help young people avoid involvement with the justice system and develop into health and productive adults. As part of the assessment process, the Task Force has developed a Community Survey to gather input, which can be completed online or downloaded and mailed in. To complete a paper copy of the ... Read More ›

Please go to Seacoast Online to read the full article.  ~~Excerpt SANFORD -- Partners Bank is proud to announce that Crossroads behavioral health and addiction treatment center has been awarded a gift of $500 as the October recipient of the Bank’s monthly Employee Donation Program. Since the program’s inception in 2015, Maine organizations have received more than $21,000 in support. ... Read More ›

Please go to The County to read the full article.  Lorraine Chamberlain (Courtesy of Aroostook Mental Health Center) By: Contributed ~~Excerpt CARIBOU, Maine — Aroostook Mental Health Center has been selected to serve on a national Advancing Health Equity Learning Collaborative, a component of the Advancing Health Equity: Leading Care, Payment, and Systems Transformation program funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Lorraine Chamberlain, program director ... Read More ›