SAD WAY TO GO –
July 24, 2024 – On their way out the door, corrections officers offer people getting released from the Aroostook County Jail in Houlton a bag with the opioid overdose reversal medication naloxone, drug test strips, a first-aid kit and a brochure for the Aroostook Recovery Center of Hope. More than two-thirds of the jail’s prisoners have a substance use or mental health diagnosis … That’s something jail officials, public health experts and advocates said they would like to see change. Providing addiction treatment within jails is one thing. Helping people stay sober after they leave is a whole other challenge –– but overcoming it could prevent people from overdosing or getting arrested again.
