In rural areas like Warrick County, addiction — particularly to opioids and methamphetamine — has touched nearly every family in some way. Traditional jail sentences often don’t solve the problem. In fact, in many cases, they make it worse. A person struggling with addiction might serve time, only to be released and fall right back into the same habits, the same crowd, the same pain. That’s where drug courts come in.

If we pretend that everyone that has made a mistake...should get some sort of economic death penalty where they can never get a job again, we will never overcome this problem.' Harlan County, Kentucky, a rural area with high overdose rates, is emerging as a model for addiction recovery. The county has implemented various recovery programs, drug courts, and transportation services, all funded by opioid settlement money. 

Using PRISM and RE-AIM models, this study describes how jail context features affect the number of people linked to MOUD and the sustainment of jail linkage programs, focusing on case studies in rural and urban Kentucky jails.

Video explores challenges for women reentering rural communities after incarceration and highlights innovative solutions like farm-based housing and reintegration initiatives.

Community media project in Central Appalachia supports communication and healing for families and communities affected by mass incarceration.

This podcast series tells the stories of participants in Galax, Virginia's Recovery Court, focusing on opioid crisis impacts and rehabilitation.

The MOMS program in Minnesota helps parents recover from opioid abuse and thrive, offering lessons for other communities.

Butler County Jail's reentry program uses community partnerships for post-classification assessment, post-release action plans, and inmate advocacy.

Adventures in Recovery (AIR) in Cattaraugus County, NY, offers peer-led sober activities and support, fostering recovery through community engagement and wellness.

New anti-recidivism program in rural Louisiana supports reentry, aiming to reduce high rates of prison return by providing local social and economic support.

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a guide to help people reentering communities after incarceration connect to health coverage and services, supporting reentry and health.

Sanpete County, Utah, jail's community health worker program reduced recidivism by connecting released individuals to treatment, jobs, and support.

Guidelines for integrating peer recovery support into treatment courts, including adult, DWI, opioid, veterans, and co-occurring courts, with rural considerations.

Rural communities across the country are identifying ways to effectively partner with their local business community to better serve residents with substance use disorder (SUD) and make more efficient use of limited resources. This brief is one in a series highlighting projects that are part of the Rural Responses to the Opioid Epidemic (RROE) project.