The Sarasota County Commission approved plans for spending millions of dollars of settlement money recovered from the pharmaceutical industry because of the state and national opioid epidemic.
The largest chunk of funding approved by the commission is more than $2.7 million that will enhance a residential addiction treatment and reentry program.
Sarasota County Director of Health and Human Services Charles Henry wrote in the memo to the board that the program would implement treatment and jail prevention strategies learned from the Community Offender Rehabilitative Treatment (CORT) pilot program.
CORT’s federal funding expires in September. Its replacement will be called Rehabilitation, Education, and Support Toward Offender Reintegration (RESTORE). The enhanced program will aim to combat overcrowding at the Sarasota County Jail, which a county report called “a prevalent issue.”
Addiction adds to Sarasota County Jail crowding
The county jail "currently has an average daily population of 1,000 inmates with an operational capacity of 836 beds,” the report said, adding it "has held a population greater than the operational capacity since 2008.”
A 2023 survey found that of the 9,758 people booked in the Sarasota County Jail, 46% experienced a substance abuse disorder – a 3% increase from the previous year.
RESTORE would target male, low-level felons with a history of chronic substance abuse. Expanded treatments would include family and trauma therapies, meditation and stress management classes, and relapse prevention planning.
The county staff also recommended an expansion of Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) services at the Sarasota County Correctional Facility with a $434,000 funding boost.
The Sheriff’s Department’s MAT program partners with the correctional healthcare service NaphCare and the Sarasota behavioral healthcare non-profit Lightshare to treat at least 20 patients at a time.
Sarasota County Sheriff Lt. Arlene Tracy wrote in a memo that the number of patients would be projected to double with the approval of more funds for medication, an additional nurse, and a Certified Addiction Counselor.
“The MAT nurse would be responsible for providing care coordination for adults with opioid use disorder...," Tracy wrote, while the counseling money would “facilitate various essential services, including assessments, individualized service planning, monitoring, and direct counseling.”
More money allocated for addicts to reenter society
The staff also requested nearly $210,000 to expand jail Reentry Services by hiring a "navigator."
The Reentry Navigator Program was established four years ago to “support justice involved individuals in overcoming challenges,” according to a 2023 Sheriff’s Office report, by offering information to individuals while they are incarcerated, and helping "create an individualized reentry plan.”
The additional navigator would be paid hourly, estimated at about $80,000 a year according to the position’s online application.
The program is supported financially by the Barancik Foundation.
Three funds were established for the settlement money: One for cities and counties, one for different regions of Florida, and one for state-wide projects.
Sarasota County received over $1.3 million directly in 2023 and 2024; and the county received over $4.7 million from a regional fund in 2024. The county expects additional payments over the next 10-18 years.
The allocation agreement regulates the settlement proceedings Florida collected from the pharmaceutical companies Purdue Pharma, Mallinckrodt, Johnson & Johnson, as well as a few distributors.
Christian Casale covers local government for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Email him atccasale@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter @vanityhack
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