Peb Hlis 25, 2025​​ 

Cov Khoom Plig Yuav Txhawb Nqa Cov Chaw Pabcuam Kho Mob Thaum Muaj Xwm Ceev Hauv Zos hauv Stanislaus thiab Ventura Counties​​ 

SACRAMENTO — The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) awarded $800,000 to two Local Emergency Medical Service Agencies to foster low-barrier access to clinically proven opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment for patients in an emergency medical services (EMS) setting who are at risk of overdose and often do not have access to services in other settings.​​ 

“This is an innovative and lifesaving approach to address the opioid crisis. By equipping emergency medical service providers to render treatment in the field, we are meeting patients where they are and connecting them with ongoing care. This program has the potential to reduce opioid-related deaths and improve long-term health outcomes for some of California’s most vulnerable people,” said DHCS Director Michelle Baass.​​ 

The grants—awarded through the Emergency Medical Services Buprenorphine Use Pilot Program (EMSBUP) to the Stanislaus County EMS Agency and Ventura County EMS Agency—will enable these two agencies to address substance use disorder as a treatable emergency condition, utilizing paramedics to identify and treat patients who would benefit from medications for addiction treatment (MAT). MAT is the use of medications in combination with counseling and behavioral therapies, which is effective in treating OUDs and helping some people sustain recovery.

WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT: The EMSBUP has pioneered a cutting-edge approach for delivering MAT through EMS. The population served by EMS has a high risk of death from overdose. In a study of 12,000 patients who received naloxone from EMS, 10 percent died within the following year. Another study found that one-third of all patients who died from unintentional overdose had contact with EMS in the year preceding their death. With an estimated 26,000 911 calls for overdose in California, EMS is a critical and underutilized intervention point for expanding access to MAT, delivering harm reduction, and connecting patients with care.​​ 

GRANT AWARDS: This program will assist EMS providers in coordinating with navigators to provide linkages to care options for EMS patients with an OUD and provide a system for patients who sign out against medical advice to have access to outpatient treatment options. The project will run from April 1, 2025, through March 31, 2027. It will also collect de-identified data for research and monthly performance metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of this treatment model.​​ 

Additionally, resources will be provided to Local Emergency Medicine Service Agencies to support the initiation and sustainability of this treatment model, which includes a naloxone distribution program, EMS-initiated first dose of buprenorphine, and substance use navigation.​​ 

GRANTS MAKING A DIFFERENCE: Through State Opioid Response (SOR) grant funding, EMSBUP builds upon an initial SOR-funded project in Contra Costa County in 2020 in which 260 paramedics were trained to identify and treat OUD from an ambulance, more than 2,000 patients were screened for OUD, 120 received buprenorphine in the field, and 55 were connected to ongoing MAT. The results of this work encouraged other counties to adopt the model. To date, this model has been extended to 11 LEMSAs covering 13 counties to train 1,300 paramedics.​​ 

Kev siv tshuaj buprenorphine los ntawm EMS muab rau cov pej xeem uas muaj kev pheej hmoo siab kom tau txais buprenorphine thaum lub sijhawm tseem ceeb thiab zoo tshaj plaws los txais buprenorphine - tom qab noj ntau dhau, thaum cov neeg mob tsis xav noj tshuaj thiab tej zaum yuav xav txais kev kho mob ntau dua. Cov tshuaj buprenorphine uas siv los ntawm EMS coj kev kho mob rau cov neeg mob piv rau cov neeg mob uas yuav tsum nrhiav kev kho mob, uas muaj peev xwm txo qhov kev siv tshuaj ntau dhau uas ua rau tuag taus, txo cov kev ua txhaum cai, thiab cawm tau neeg txoj sia. Yog tias muaj cov pab pawg zoo, cov neeg mob tuaj yeem pib siv tshuaj buprenorphine hauv thaj chaw, txuas nrog cov kev pabcuam thaum muaj xwm txheej ceev, thiab pib zoo siab dua hauv ob peb teev. thiab txuas ntxiv kev kho mob buprenorphine los ntawm cov kev pab cuam MAT tom qab raug tso tawm ntawm chav kho mob ceev, " Phoebe Blaschak Oliveira, RN, PHN, BSN, Tus Thawj Saib Xyuas Kev Noj Qab Haus Huv Pej Xeem, Contra Costa Regional Medical Center thiab Choosing Change Clinic hais.​​ 

DUAB LOJ: Xyoo 2023, Tus Thawj Kav Xeev Newsom tau tshaj tawm nws Txoj Kev Npaj Tseem Ceeb rau Kev daws teeb meem Fentanyl thiab Opioid, uas muab cov txheej txheem dav dav los daws teeb meem opioid thiab fentanyl, suav nrog cov kauj ruam hnyav los txhawb kev siv zog tiv thaiv kev siv tshuaj ntau dhau, tuav lub luag haujlwm ntawm kev lag luam tshuaj opioid, tawm tsam kev lag luam tshuaj, thiab tsa kev paub txog kev phom sij ntawm opioids, suav nrog fentanyl.

EMSBUP tau txais nyiaj los ntawm Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration thiab yog ib feem ntawm DHCS cov kev siv zog dav dua los daws cov teeb meem kev siv tshuaj yeeb dej cawv, hu ua California DHCS Opioid Response, kom nce kev nkag mus rau MAT, txo qhov xav tau kev kho mob tsis tau txais kev pab, thiab txo cov neeg tuag los ntawm kev siv tshuaj opioid ntau dhau los ntawm kev muab kev tiv thaiv, kev kho mob, thiab kev rov zoo. Lub California DHCS Opioid Response tsom mus rau cov pej xeem uas muaj kev nkag mus rau MAT tsawg, suav nrog cov tub ntxhais hluas, cov neeg nyob hauv thaj chaw deb nroog, thiab cov zej zog American Indian thiab Alaska Native Tribal. Yog xav paub ntxiv, thov mus saib lub vev xaib DHCS.​​ 

DHCS also created the Naloxone Distribution Project (NDP) to combat opioid overdose-related deaths throughout California. The NDP aims to reduce opioid overdose deaths through the provision of free naloxone. For more information about the state’s opioid response, visit opioids.ca.gov.​​ 

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