My 23 yr old son Jeremy Cooper died on 3-25-16 from a Heroin Overdose that was laced with Fentanyl. Jeremy had been clean for 3 months. Before that he got treatment at an outpatient facility that treated opioid addiction with a medication called Methadone. Since Jeremy had no insurance, it was a big expense to him – and to me. The initial intake visit & physical was $200 and the medication was $15 a Day totaling $105 a Week Plus an additional $15 a week for a drug test. We spent $480 a month for his treatment and were unable to get Any help from the state since he was working part-time and made too much money! After 6 months, Jeremy got off the Methadone when he was arrested and had no choice but to suffer thru the terrible withdrawals in jail. Once he was out, he tried to stay clean with No Medicine since he couldn’t afford it & went to NA meetings & counseling.
Medicaid in VA may include the Counseling portion of substance abuse treatment IF you are Unemployed but Not the Medication. And if you Work, you don’t qualify to get any help with treatment!
There should be Free Health Care for Addicts who Want to get help No Matter What their income is & it should Include the Medication. We are in a National Opioid Overdose Epidemic & Something needs to be done ASAP to help treat these people so they can get well! Too Many People are Dying!
If my son had Free substance abuse treatment & medication, he very well may still be alive today – as well as Many others!