DEAR EDITOR:
As president of the Trumbull County Mental Health and Recovery Board, I am very much aware of the mental health and substance abuse issues in our community and the help that is needed in dealing with these conditions. All of us know someone whose life has been touched by someone experiencing a mental health issue and/or an addiction to alcohol or other drugs. Every family member - adults and children - is impacted in some way by these issues.
The TCMHRB and its partner agencies have been working for more than 40 years to make sure that options are available for Trumbull County residents. We work very hard to build a system of care that has the best services, are recipient-driven and encourage people to participate in their own care, in order to maintain and improve the well-being of our community. We believe that mental illness and drug dependency are treatable diseases.
It is very important that each of us work together to advocate for consumers and provider accountability. Unfortunately, the state is projecting to cut addiction services by an additional $6.2 million to begin July 1, on top of devastating cuts the last three years that have resulted in us having the ninth highest accidental death rate for drug use because very little treatment is available.
Please help us put pressure on state leaders to restore money to the mental health and addiction field. When funding and services aren't available more people end up in jail or in the hospital unnecessarily. This is awful for the person in this situation and very expensive for the taxpayers.
Teresa Massucci
President,
Trumbull County Mental
Health and Recovery Board