and qualified treatment providers, according to Mullins. In
West Virginia, substance use disorder residential treatment
providers that bill Medicaid are required to perform American
Society of Addiction Medicine assessments to help determine
the recommended level of care for each patient they serve.
However, the stigma surrounding substance use is often a
barrier for patients.
“It’s complex, but that’s true of other medical conditions.
We just don’t think of other medical conditions as something
we need to figure out and fix ourselves,” says Tack. “If you
were having a racing heart, you wouldn’t be in the phone book
trying to figure it out. You’d call your doctor and get the needed
tests. If you needed anything further, such as a specialist,
your doctor would then link you to those things. Why should
addiction be any different? We have addiction specialists who
can move your care forward just like a cardiologist would for
a heart condition.”
The DHHR’s Bureau for Behavioral Health is currently
rolling out a statewide stigma reduction campaign designed
to change perceptions of opioid use disorder and encourage
MAT awareness and participation in West Virginia.
Telehealth Resources
Across the state, the Help for WV line is a one-stop telehealth
resource a patient can call or text for help.
“Individuals who are seeking treatment for substance use
disorder can call the helpline at 844-HELP4WV,” says Mullins.
“The helpline provides referrals to agencies that have been
approved by the DHHR.”
Even with these expanded services, access is still a challenge
in West Virginia as a full continuum of treatment is not available
in every county.
“Ideally, a treatment center would be available within about
an hour’s drive of anywhere a person lives. I don’t know that
that’s going to be feasible in our state just because of the lack
of density and populations of some areas and the geography.
And there are other barriers, like transportation,” says Tack.
“There are a lot of different things being worked on around
access. I think there’s a great focus on building that continuum
of care. It’s very much a work in progress.”