Issue Brief: Galvanizing Rural Opioid Response Efforts with Rural Health Transformation Program Dollars

To inform states’ Rural Health Transformation Program fund implementation plans, this issue brief shares findings from ten FORE grantees that have developed innovative models for expanding access to prevention, treatment, and recovery supports in rural and frontier areas. Their approaches offer replicable strategies for overcoming the significant challenges rural communities face in treating opioid use disorder (OUD) and preventing overdose deaths, including eliminating shortages of behavioral health providers and pervasive stigma that discourages individuals and families from seeking help.