BERKSHIRE REGIONAL PLANNING COMMISSION

1 FENN STREET, SUITE 201, PITTSFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS 01201

TELEPHONE (413) 442-1521 · FAX (413) 442-1523
Massachusetts Relay Service: TTY: 771 or 1-800-439-2370
www.berkshireplanning.org

KYLE HANLON, Chair THOMAS MATUSZKO, A.I.C.P.

SHEILA IRVIN, Vice-Chair Executive Director
MARIE RAFTERY, Clerk
JOHN DUVAL, Treasurer

For Immediate Release

Press Inquiries: Jennifer Kimball, Principal Planner, Berkshire Regional Planning Commission
David Kibbe, Communications Director, Boston Medical Center
Email address: jkimball@berkshireplanning.org, David.Kibbe@bmc.org
Phone Number: 413.442.1521 or 617.638.8499 (BMC)

National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Awards Boston Medical Center $89M
to Lead Research Study to Reduce Opioid Deaths by 40%
Pittsfield and North Adams among the sixteen participating communities in the Commonwealth

(Pittsfield, MA, April 25, 2019) - On April 18, 2019, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of
the National Institutes of Health (NIH), awarded $89M to Boston Medical Center (BMC) to lead a
research study with the goal of reducing opioid deaths by 40% in some of the most heavily impacted
Massachusetts communities in three years as part of the NIH HEAL (Helping to End Addiction Long-term)
Initiative. Pittsfield and North Adams, located in Berkshire County, are two of the 16 designated
communities. Massachusetts is one of four states, which received this award along with Kentucky, New
York State, and Ohio.

“The opioid crisis in Massachusetts has been devastating, as it has been across the country,” said Jeffrey
Samet, MD, MA, MPH, Chief of General Internal Medicine at BMC and professor of medicine at Boston
University School of Medicine. “This research study is a major step forward. We will take what we’ve
learned at Boston Medical Center and across Massachusetts over the past 20 years and work with our
partners to bring those initiatives together to make a serious dent in the overdose death rate. It means
pulling out all the stops.” Samet will be leading this statewide research study effort.

“The opioid epidemic is a national and local crisis that continues to devastate communities throughout
the commonwealth and across the country. I am pleased to know that the City of Pittsfield is among
the designated locations that will benefit from this major study. We must continue to give this issue
the attention it needs to help our loved ones who are battling addiction,” stated Pittsfield Mayor Linda
Tyer.

North Adams Mayor Thomas Bernard stated, “Thanks to this HEALing Communities grant, which will
bring new allies and new resources to our efforts to address the opioid epidemic , North Adams and
Berkshire County will be at the forefront of developing and implementing evidence-based strategies,
education programs, and new interventions that may help to save lives in our community while
contributing to the development of a national model.”

“This comprehensive research study is a real opportunity to save lives and make Berkshire County a
leader in ending the nation’s opioid epidemic. The Berkshire District Attorney’s Office will work closely
with public health professionals and our community partners to establish innovative and evidence-
based strategies for overcoming the opioid public health crisis and building a safer Berkshire County,”
stated Berkshire County District Attorney Andrea Harrington.

The approach of BMC’s study will be to partner with 16 communities across the state to test the impact
of Office-Based Addiction Treatment (OBAT) and the deployment of additional interventions. Eight sites
will implement OBAT and eight will implement OBAT with additional programs, such as community
education, accelerated access to medication during hospitalization, jail, and detoxification as well as
prevention and intervention programs in communities, schools, and doctor’s offices.

Jennifer Kimball, Coordinator for the Berkshire Opioid Addiction Prevention Collaborative stated,
“Berkshire County has been seriously impacted by the opioid epidemic, and we are very grateful to be
a part of this important research effort. Not only will Berkshire County benefit from an increased
access to office-based addiction treatment and perhaps additional services, but the Commonwealth
and the country will benefit from a well-designed study that is representational of a diverse number of
communities, each with its own demographics, dynamics, and needs. This type of comprehensive
study is what is needed in order to understand what truly works to reduce opioid-related deaths. I feel
very hopeful.”

Through working collaboratively with community organizations and research institutions, this grant
has great potential to bring science-based solutions to address opioid addiction,” stated Thomas
Matuszko, Executive Director of Berkshire Regional Planning Commission.

“We all know the U.S. is in the midst of an opioid epidemic,” said Christine Macbeth, ACSW, LICSW,
President and Chief Executive Officer of the Brien Center. “Berkshire County has witnessed first-hand
the devastation that the opioid crisis has wrought on Massachusetts and the nation as a whole. Yet
opioid addiction is a treatable disease. This grant has the potential of allowing us to enhance our
continuum of addiction treatment programs and expand our efforts to reach people who need our
help, but might otherwise not find our services.”

About the Berkshire Opioid Addiction Prevention Collaborative (BOAPC): The purpose of the Berkshire
Opioid Abuse Prevention Collaborative (BOAPC) is to implement local policy, practice, systems, and/or
environmental changes to prevent the misuse and abuse of opioids and to prevent and reduce
unintentional deaths and non-fatal hospital events associated with opioid poisonings throughout
Berkshire County.
More information about the work of the Berkshire Opioid Addiction Prevention Collaborative can be
found at:

Website: www.boapc.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/BerkshireBOAPC

About Boston Medical Center: Boston Medical Center is a private, not-for-profit, 514-bed, academic
medical center located in Boston's historic South End. The primary teaching affiliate for Boston
University School of Medicine, BMC is the largest safety net hospital and busiest trauma and emergency
services center in New England. It is the home of the nationally respected Grayken Center for Addiction,
led by former Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, Michael Botticelli. More information
about the work of the Boston Medical Center can be found at:

Website: https://www.bmc.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BostonMedicalCenter/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/The_BMC