Insurance Company Gives Delaware $325K in Grants for Opioid Crisis

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An insurance company has given four Delaware organizations $325,000 in grants to combat the state’s opioid crisis.

The News Journal of Wilmington reports Highmark Delaware President Tim Constantine announced the grants Monday as “no organization or entity can fight this alone.”

The state Department of Health and Social Services says 34 people have died from suspected overdoses so far this year, while 308 died in 2016. State Division of Public Health Director Karyl Rattay said the uptick in state overdose deaths started in 2009, when they first surpassed the number of motor vehicle deaths.

The four organizations – Gaudenzia, Inc., atTAcK Addiction, Boys and Girls Clubs of Delaware and the Sussex County Health Coalition – are to use the grants for treatment, prevention, community planning and harm reduction.

Information from: The News Journal of Wilmington, Del.