New detox treatment center crosses fundraising finish line
–San Luis Obispo County is one step closer to having its first and only detox, or Medically Assisted Withdrawal Treatment (MAT) Center thanks to a $250,000 grant by Bank of America to the Community Action Partnership of San Luis Obispo County (CAPSLO). With approximately 10-percent of the San Luis Obispo County population having substance use disorder issues, the next nearest MAT facility serving low-income patients is in Santa Cruz, Fresno, or Los Angeles.
The 34 Prado MAT Center will be located on the campus of CAPSLO’s 40 Prado Homeless Services Center, and is a new project to meet an articulated need expressed by the community, local law enforcement agencies, County Drug and Alcohol services, county and local government, and other social service agencies. The facility will incorporate medically assisted withdrawal treatment and a residential program to be managed by the county.
“The MAT has been a dream of the community, decades in the making, to help those struggling with addiction locally. I am so grateful to Bank of America for providing this grant to fully fund this center,” said Elizabeth “Biz” Steinberg, CAPSLO CEO.
Originally funding had been secured for the project in mid-2019 when CAPSLO worked with the county to secure AB109 funds, which are funds given by the state to the county to help it take care of certain populations of offenders; funding from the Homeless Emergency Aid Program (HEAP) and the Mental Health Service Act (MHSA) along with two large grants from local private donors. By the end of 2020, expenses had gone up due to the rise in construction costs as a result of COVID-19; and CAPSLO was questioning how to proceed. Not wanting to risk losing funding that had to be spent in 2021, CAPSLO’s board approved that construction move forward hoping that the generosity of the community would fill the gap.
Knowing that Bank of America invests into family stabilization programs like low-income health services, crisis prevention, and wrap-around services to help keep people off the streets, CAPSLO reached out to the bank to see if the MAT might be a fit.
“Bank of America works with local agencies to help lift people out of poverty by getting them the critical services necessary to begin establishing stability in their lives once again,” said Greg Bland, Bank of America president for San Luis Obispo. “Addiction services can play a key role in holistic recovery and is why CAPSLO’s MAT Center is so important for the region, and we were glad to provide the capstone grant to finally help make this long-awaited project a reality.”
Anyone in San Luis Obispo County with a drug or mental health issue can be admitted to the withdrawal treatment facility that’s on pace to open its doors this summer.
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