BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) - An addiction treatment center based in Bismarck is expanding after seeing the demand for drug and alcohol abuse treatment services double in the past five years.
Heartview Foundation announced plans this month to add 16 more treatment beds for men and 15 efficiency apartments at the shuttered Ruth Meiers men’s emergency shelter. The organization bought the 12,000-square-foot shelter for $1 million earlier this year.
The facility is expected to open by the end of the year, the Bismarck Tribune reported .
“As most of you are aware, the United States is currently in the middle of an opioid epidemic,” said Kurt Snyder, Heartview’s executive director. “Nationally, we are losing 175 Americans every day. That’s like a 747 crashing every single day with no survivors.”
North Dakota has seen a steady increase in drug overdose deaths from 20 in 2013 to 77 in 2016. About 9 percent of North Dakota residents age 18 and up in 2016 had a substance use disorder in the past year compared to the national average of 7.8 percent, according results of the North Dakota Behavioral Health System Study, which were released in April.
Heartview has tried to keep up with demand over the years, including opening a residential facility in Cando in 2015 and starting a methadone treatment program in Bismarck last year.
The new residential treatment and transitional housing facility at the former shelter in Bismarck will offer beds for men only. Heartview’s downtown Bismarck location will be updated and designed for women.
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Information from: Bismarck Tribune, http://www.bismarcktribune.com
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