Rhode Island Gets $650,000 Grant in Fight Against Opiate Addiction

Rhode Island has been awarded $650,000 in federal funding to help fight opiate addiction in the state.

Rhode Island's congressional delegation recently announced the grant.

They say the money will allow East Bay Community Action and Thundermist Health Center to provide the life-saving antidote naloxone and additional resources to help treat opiate abuse and addiction.

The funding is provided by the Health Resources and Service Administration and disbursed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The Rhode Island Department of Health says it identified 248 accidental drug-related overdose deaths in 2015.

The U.S. Senate on Thursday voted 94-1 to pass a bill that would create grants to bolster state and local programs targeted at preventing opiate addiction. Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democrat, sponsored the measure. 

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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