Please go to the Portland Press Herald to read the full article.  Jessica Pollard, who has been teaching at the Yale University School of Medicine, returns to her native state to lead an office that plays a key role in responding to the opioid crisis. By: Eric Russell, Staff Writer ~~Excerpt A Maine native who spent the last six years as a psychiatry professor at the Yale University School of Medicine has been named director of Maine’s Office of Substance Abuse and Mental Health ... Read More ›

Thursday, October 3, 8:30AM – 3:30PM Augusta Civic Center, Augusta Maine This year’s conference, A New Day for Health Care in Maine, is designed to blend celebration with resolve and commitment. Progress being made to improve access to quality and affordable health care in Maine will be celebrated.  At the same time, we will highlight the need to protect, preserve and build on gains made to expand access to affordable coverage, preventative care and other health care including prescription ... Read More ›

Please go to the Boothbay Register to read the full article.  By: Gina Hamilton ~~Excerpt Two Bridges Regional Jail is about seven weeks into its Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) program with ENSO Recovery, as part of a grant by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services, with funding from the federal government, to combat opioid abuse in jail and after inmates leave. As of Sept. 19, the MAT program had 10 inmates, all ... Read More ›

Please go to Maine Public to read the full article.  By: Patty Wight ~~Excerpt A statewide phone support line for people with mental health issues will be reduced from a 24-hour service to a seven hour daily service next year under a proposed new state contract. The proposed change is drawing criticism and concern from the mental health community. The Intentional Warm Line offers peer-to-peer phone support for people facing non-crisis mental health situations. Simonne Maline of ... Read More ›

Please go to the Bangor Daily News to read the full article.  By: Erin Rhoda, BDN Staff ~~Excerpt Maine’s government will open up a pool of money in the coming months to help people with addiction find a safe place to live. It will be the first time the state has devoted funding to so-called recovery homes, after years of rising death tolls from the opioid crisis. But the state won’t be able to support any existing recovery homes in the Bangor area as they stand now because not one ... Read More ›

Please go to Maine Public to read the full article.  Researchers surveyed people about their happy childhood memories and found that those who had more were much less likely to experience depression later in life. By: Selena Simmons-Duffin ~~Excerpt Plenty of research shows that adverse childhood experiences can lead to depression and other health problems later in life. But researcher Christina Bethell wondered whether positive experiences in childhood could counter that. Her ... Read More ›

Join Wellspring for their Annual 5K Race for Recovery on September 14th, 2019 at the Bangor Waterfront. This is a terrific way to celebrate recovery, show your support, reduce stigma, and offer living proof that recovery is real! Create a team! Wellspring would love to have families and friends and non-profit service organizations and local businesses create a team and come out and show your support for Recovery! Show them your unique style! Signs are welcome! Think: "We support ... Read More ›

Please go to WGME 13 to read the full article. By: Taylor Carins ~~Excerpt PORTLAND (WGME) -- Some Maine recovery service providers say this summer has been especially busy for new clients. "We turn people away from the Milestone Detox program because we just don't have enough beds," Milestone Recovery Executive Director Bob Fowler said. He says a large wrench in their capacity problems is a federal law that places restrictions on the number of beds in a facility. ... Read More ›

Please go to the Portland Press Herald to read the full article.  By: Joe Lawlor, Staff Writer ~~Excerpt About 10 percent of the 35,000 adults who have gained health care coverage since Maine expanded Medicaid in January are receiving treatment for opioid use disorder. Health care experts have predicted that Medicaid expansion will result in 70,000 additional Mainers enrolling in the program by the end of 2019. If current trends hold, that would amount to roughly 7,000 additional ... Read More ›

Please go to the Bangor Daily News to read the full editorial.  By: The Editorial Board ~~Excerpt Last week, President Donald Trump reiterated the flawed notion that mental illness is the root cause of gun violence in America. He then called for the reopening of institutions to house Americans with mental illness, suggesting they were too dangerous to be “on the streets.” This is a perilous scapegoating that falsely stigmatizes the millions of Americans with mental health ... Read More ›