The Erie County Sheriff’s Office and Medication for Addiction Treatment and Electronic Referrals (MATTERS) is teaming up to ensure incarcerated individuals continue to get important addiction treatment medication after they are released from custody. This partnership is already being lauded by peers from across New York State.
In 2022, the Correctional Health Division of the Erie County Sheriff’s Office launched the MAT Program. It has proven to be a success, with more than 11,000 incarcerated individuals screened for substance abuse disorders and about 2,500 of them receiving medication and/or counseling services under the program to date.
Under New York State law, the Sheriff’s Office is required to provide seven days’ worth of medication for incarcerated individuals when they are released from custody and re-enter the community. Under this new groundbreaking partnership, Correctional Health personnel now also provides them with a referral to MATTERS, a platform which has the ability to issue vouchers to cover medication and transportation costs. MATTERS can also link individuals with a clinic of their choosing.
“We have been extremely pleased with the implementation of this partnership with MATTERS and believe this will go a long way to addressing health inequities in our community,” said Sheriff John Garcia. “Under this plan, participants of our MAT program are able to obtain access to clinicians right in their neighborhoods, rather than having to cross the county to receive further treatment.”
Dr. Kevin McGee and Dr. Joshua Lynch, Chief Medical Officers for the Erie County Sheriff’s Office and MATTERS respectively, worked to bring the two agencies together.
“MATTERS is proud to partner with ECSO on establishing an efficient and effective process to provide low barrier access to ongoing treatment through its New York statewide referral network,” said Dr. Lynch. “We plan to use this program as a national model for re-entry in the setting of substance use disorder along with other diagnoses.”
Amanda Martinez, a Senior Nurse Practitioner with the Erie County Sheriff’s Office joined MATTERS at the New York Association of Treatment Court Professionals Conference on March 6th to share how the alliance between the two entities is working.
Brigid Keane, an Outreach Coordinator for MATTERS says the arrangement allows discharged incarcerated individuals to leave custody with a plan and resources to carry on with their treatment.
“Incarceration offers a unique opportunity for individuals to get linked to life-saving medications and treatment,” Keane said. “MATTERS aims to provide a seamless transition back into the community by linking individuals to an appointment as soon as the next day and providing wrap-around supports so that what has been achieved by ECSO is not undone.”