Meth Affected Infant, Grandparents Push Drug Treatment at Capitol

(Springfield, IL) – Among the hundreds of mental health and drug treatment advocates in Springfield 10-days ago to urge lawmakers to boost behavioral health funding in next year’s state budget was an infant, born with Meth – Methamphetamine – in her system, her three year old brother, also born with Methamphetamine in his system, and their guardian grandparents.

Sophie Holley, four-weeks old, and brother D'Angelo, accompanied by grandparents, John and Angie Holley, met with lawmakers on May 17 throughout the day at the capitol urging them to support a 10% rate increase for the state’s community mental health and addiction treatment providers.

Holley, of downstate Paris, says Illinois is wrestling with multiple drug addiction wild fires, including opioids and crystal meth, but funding for drug treatment has been significantly reduced, noting that the Governor’s proposed budget cuts $18 million in the current Fiscal year 2018 budget and includes a $6.1 million reduction for next year’s Fiscal Year 2019 spending plan.

“When Illinois suffered 2,278 drug overdose deaths during 2016, of which 80% were opioid-related fatalities, cutting drug treatment funding is as wrong-headed as politicians can get,” said Holley. “Infants, like my granddaughter, Sophie and her brother, who were with me at the capitol, are among the victims of our state’s addiction crisis, especially downstate, and they suffer before their lives can even begin by politicians cutting treatment services.”

Holley, a Certified Recovery Support Specialist at the Paris-based Human Resources Center, joined hundreds of other behavioral health advocates in Springfield on May 17.

Additionally, he says that he and his wife support stronger punishment of the dealers who make, supply, and sell these child-harming drugs.

A coalition of behavioral health advocate groups, which includes the Community Behavioral Health Association of Illinois (CBHA), is pushing lawmakers to reject budget cuts and, instead, approve a 10% rate increase for mental health and substance use disorder services, which is approximately $23 million ($11.5 million with Medicaid match) for mental health and $12 million ($6 million with Medicaid match) for substance use disorders.

“Earlier this year, the state established a ‘hotline’ for those with drug addiction seeking treatment, and that was a useful step,” said CBHA C.E.O. Marvin Lindsey. “But a ‘helpline’ must have actual help on the other end of that line, so behavioral health providers need a 10% rate increase in the budget to fight an opioid crisis that, with more than 2,000 deaths annually, we are currently losing.”

Lawmakers are looking to adopt a new state budget before the legislature adjourns on May 31.

davidormsby@davidormsby.com