Moraine, Ohio, Has Begged for More High Quality Addiction Treatment Providers. CleanSlate Answers The Call With New Outpatient Center.

Jun 28, 2019

Montgomery County, Ohio, anchored by Dayton, recently earned national headlines for its plummeting rate of overdose deaths, down 54 percent over the past year.

But despite the increase of addiction treatment providers in Ohio, many organizations leading the state’s efforts to address the epidemic, including the State Attorney General’s Office and multiple health systems, agree that providers delivering quality, evidence-based, outpatient medication-assisted treatment (MAT) services are in short supply. 

The shortage of responsible treatment providers has made Montgomery County residents vulnerable to Medicaid fraud and overprescribing, the byproduct of a local treatment industry that is fragmented and chaotic. 

CleanSlate is addressing this imbalance with a new MAT center in Moraine, a section of Montgomery County that is south of Dayton. The outpatient center, located at 4700 North Springboro Pike, Suite C, began seeing patients this week.   

“The Moraine center represents our fourth in Ohio,” said Anthony Belott, Chief Development Officer of CleanSlate. “As one of the states hit hardest by the opioid epidemic, Ohio desperately needs more high-quality providers of medication treatment. CleanSlate has established collaborative relationships with many key stakeholders in Ohio, and we look forward to working closely with community leaders as we expand our services in the state.”

(Pictured above: CleanSlate lab technician Manny Adorno processes specimens in an analyzer.)

Also read: Medication-Assisted Treatment Works. Here’s 4 Reasons Why It’s Rarely Used.

Bullseye zone of abuse 

Dayton serves as a waypoint between Springfield and Cincinnati on US-75, the infamous I-75 Heroin Highway. Police busts of some large dealer operations in recent years has not seemed to slow the continued availability of narcotics within the marketplace. A spike in narcotic-related violations documented across Montgomery County, and the increased prevalence of fentanyl-related overdose deaths, suggest a persistent problem and need in the market for quality treatment.

“The decline of overdose deaths may be down, but much of that is related to the increased availability of Narcan,” said Joan Erwin, Vice President of Business Development for CleanSlate. “Everyone is reviving at home, and these overdoses aren’t showing up on coroner’s reports or on the police blotter.”

The Dayton area has been crushed in recent years by the loss of several major manufacturing contracts. Many residents lost jobs, and with that their commercial health insurance. Poverty, depression, and lower access to health care can fuel a rise in substance use disorder (SUD), which has been the case in Montgomery County.

Poor oversight leads to fraud

A 2017 Drug Trend Report by the Ohio Society of Addiction Medicine showed an increased street availability of buprenorphine, likely due to a high prevalence of heroin use in the region. According to the report, dealers were willing to pay patients as much as $1,200 for a month’s worth of their prescription, a crime likely enabled by the poor addiction treatment standards evident in many of the treatment resources in the city. 

“Many area providers use less-than-accurate dip-testing without confirmation, or shortchange oversight due to cost, staffing, and limited time,” said Erwin. “CleanSlate is rigorous in its adherence to diversion control so that medication is used as prescribed and not criminalized.” 

In April of 2019, the largest opioid takedown in U.S. history stemmed from pill mills located in Dayton, with nearly two million pills allegedly prescribed improperly. 

“Community stakeholders are complaining about poor prescribing practices, the need for withdrawal management at the street level, and the inability of the local providers to address the scope of need in Montgomery County,” said Belott. “Local leaders are desperate for more responsible treatment providers to enter the space, and CleanSlate is eager to answer this call.” 

More than 41,000 patients treated

CleanSlate’s program of care includes appropriate medication treatment prescribed by licensed medical providers, as well as clear accountability, supportive counseling, and care coordination.

Over the past decade, CleanSlate has treated more than 41,000 patients, with more than 14,000 patients currently being treated in 11 states. In Ohio, CleanSlate operates centers in Springfield, Lewis Center, and Columbus, as well as its newest center in Moraine. The company continues to expand its services across the country to increase desperately-needed access to outpatient medication treatment for addiction. 

To make an appointment at CleanSlate’s Moraine center, please call 937-558-5100, or walk into our center at 4700 North Springboro Pike, Suite C, located in the DaVita Dialysis building. To find out more details about this center, click here.

Learn more about CleanSlate at www.cleanslatecenters.com. To schedule an appointment at any CleanSlate center, please visit https://www.cleanslatecenters.com to find the center nearest you. All CleanSlate centers accept walk-ins.

For media inquiries, please contact Carol Fite-Lynn at cflynn@cleanslatecenters.com.

Also read:

Bright Spot With Opioid Epidemic: Prescription Opioid Use Plummeting, Medication Treatment Growing

The Fuzzy Borders Between Social Drinking And Alcohol Dependence

The Veterans Administration Is Making Progress On The Opioid Battlefield