Department of Human Services Receives More Than $5 Million to Improve Drug, Alcohol, HIV/AIDS and Treatment Services

SPRINGFIELD -- Governor George H. Ryan today announced that the Illinois Department of Human Services' (DHS) Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse (OASA) received three Federal grants totaling more than $5 million to improve its drug, alcohol, HIV/AIDS and treatment services and to implement pilot programs designed to expand services in targeted areas.

"These three grants will strengthen the Department of Human Services' continuum of care as they work to ensure that the state's resources are being used in areas that need them most," said Governor George H. Ryan. "This, coupled with the new pilot programs, will allow the department to improve services and better the lives of thousands of Illinoisians."

The first pilot program award will provide approximately $1.8 million over three years to create a team charged with linking homeless persons with substance and mental health services, housing and supportive services on the West Side of Chicago. The second pilot program award will provide approximately $2.5 million over five years to serve addicted persons in East St. Louis who are at high risk of infection or have HIV/AIDS. These two grants were awarded from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and will be funded through the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment.

OASA's other grant award totaled $900,000. This grant will be used to research and identify substance abuse services throughout Illinois. This grant was awarded to OASA from the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment.

"Whenever the department can merge its services and interconnect supports, we can better help the client," said DHS Secretary Linda Reneé Baker. "I am very proud of OASA for all their efforts in the community and being awarded these grants, because they strengthen the department's resolve to provide high quality services to Illinois' citizens."

The first grant will create an intergovernmental, interagency network to administer services. Partners and providers involved in the initiative include the City of Chicago's Departments of Human Services and Public Health, the Department of Psychiatry of the University of Illinois at Chicago, the Northwestern University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, the University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration and a number of substance abuse treatment, mental health and homeless service organizations.

Under the second program grant, OASA will add 50 methadone treatment slots at its Cornell-Interventions' East St. Louis site and provide specialized services to reduce the risk of infection, re-exposure and the transmission of HIV and Hepatitis C. In addition to group counseling and education, the project will provide enhanced medical and psychiatric services, case management and a recovery assistant to help clients make the transition from addiction to recovery. The project will be linked with St. Mary's Hospital in East St. Louis.

The third grant will fund four, three-year studies that will identify the state's specific substance abuse treatment needs and how to better allocate those resources. The four studies are:

• The Household Survey will assess the current substance abuse treatment needs of the state's older adolescent and adult populations. The data will be used to better identify those in need of treatment including adolescents; persons with disabilities; persons suffering from mental disorders; domestic violence victims; persons at risk for homelessness; gay and lesbian populations; pathological gamblers; persons receiving government assistance and criminal justice populations; including persons currently on probation and those recently incarcerated.

• The Database Linkage project will analyze data from multiple state agencies in order to track post treatment performance and assist OASA in determining the states' unmet needs.

• The Administrative Client-Level Treatment Data project will develop an integrated database of treatment results and long term client histories. This information will allow OASA to better understand how treatment episodes are linked and how treatment works over time. The Household Survey, the Database Linkage project and the Administrative Client-Level Treatment Data project will be completed in conjunction with the University of Illinois at Chicago's Survey Research Laboratory.

• The Social Indicator Study will examine the various impacts of substance abuse within local Illinois areas and populations.