Virginia Opioid Abatement Authority

Virginia Opioid Abatement Authority Addressing the opioid epidemic in Virginia by funding efforts to treat, prevent, and reduce opioid misuse.

"I can only imagine what our youth will be able to bring back to this world, once free from the chains of mental illness...
09/02/2026

"I can only imagine what our youth will be able to bring back to this world, once free from the chains of mental illness and substance use disorder." — Kerrie Laughlin, Executive Director, Northern Virginia Adolescent Treatment Center

The Northern Virginia Adolescent Treatment Center was built on the belief that a teenager's story is still being written. By providing evidence-based treatment, family engagement, and continuity of care, the center helps young people move beyond immediate challenges and toward futures defined by opportunity, growth, and possibility.

The center was made possible by a Virginia Opioid Abatement Authority award to Fairfax County, in partnership with the City of Alexandria, Arlington County, and Prince William County.

09/01/2026

“The foster care system is traumatic, and if there’s anything that our system can do to make it less traumatic, we should do that.”

The opioid crisis doesn’t just affect the individual; it also has long-term impacts on the children involved.

Grace Carpenter, Henrico County’s Permanency Division Manager, explains that kinship care is essential to providing comfort, stability, and familiarity to children impacted by the opioid crisis, keeping them out of the foster care system and within the care of someone they love.

An investment in kinship care is an investment toward a child’s future.
September is National Kinship Care Month. Across our Commonwealth, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and close family friends are quietly stepping into one of the most important roles there is — raising a child when their parents cannot.

This month, we honor these kinship caregivers and the extraordinary difference they make — one family at a time.

If you know a kinship caregiver, tell them they're seen. And if you are one, thank you.

August 31 is International Overdose Awareness Day, a time to remember the lives lost to overdose, support the families a...
08/31/2026

August 31 is International Overdose Awareness Day, a time to remember the lives lost to overdose, support the families and communities impacted, and recognize the importance of continued action.

Across Virginia, prevention, treatment, recovery, and harm reduction efforts are helping communities respond to the opioid crisis and build pathways toward healthier futures.

Today, we honor those we have lost and reaffirm the work still ahead.

The OAA Grants Committee will hold an all-virtual meeting to review recommendations for awards to state agencies for the...
08/29/2026

The OAA Grants Committee will hold an all-virtual meeting to review recommendations for awards to state agencies for the 2026-2027 performance period on Tuesday, September 1, 2026, from 3:00pm to 4:00pm. Visit the Commonwealth Calendar for session details at the link in comments.

One of the most powerful elements of the Northwestern Regional Adult Detention Center's recovery program is also one of ...
08/29/2026

One of the most powerful elements of the Northwestern Regional Adult Detention Center's recovery program is also one of its most human: the peer recovery specialist.

These are trained, certified professionals — with lived experience. They've been in addiction. They've found their way out. So when they sit across from someone in a detention center who doubts recovery is possible, they carry a credibility no textbook can give.

"Some of them look at us and say, 'How could you possibly know? You went to school and read it in a book,'" said Rebekah Jarrell, a peer recovery specialist. "Peers can answer that directly: 'Actually, I do know exactly where you are. I know exactly how you're feeling.'"

Jarrell puts it simply — she's a sober friend. Someone who's walked the same road.

"Every person's story is different. But I went through addiction. I'm on Suboxone. It helps them to know there's someone there who gets what's going on."

That connection — unscripted, earned by nothing but shared experience — is what makes it land.

The Virginia Opioid Abatement Authority is proud to support the recovery programs inside the Northwestern Regional Adult Detention Center — programs that offer real pathways forward for people on their recovery journey.

The OAA has posted recommendations for $12,324,558.92 in 2026-2027 awards for state agencies to support a variety of aba...
08/28/2026

The OAA has posted recommendations for $12,324,558.92 in 2026-2027 awards for state agencies to support a variety of abatement projects. For more information, visit the link at the comments.

Want to know the secret to helping Virginia recover from the opioid epidemic — and helping our friends, neighbors, and l...
08/28/2026

Want to know the secret to helping Virginia recover from the opioid epidemic — and helping our friends, neighbors, and loved ones find their way to active recovery?

People.

The people who believe in the power of recovery. The people who fuel the programs the Virginia Opioid Abatement Authority funds across the Commonwealth. The people who refuse to give up on people.

Here are just a few of them.

"We never expect them to just come in trusting us. We earn it. We earn it by creating a safe space, by telling them they...
08/27/2026

"We never expect them to just come in trusting us. We earn it. We earn it by creating a safe space, by telling them they're worthy, by providing for them while they're here and doing everything that we say we'll do." — Ali Hamed-Moore, Chief Administrative Officer

Many of the women who arrive at The Grove on Patterson have experienced years of trauma, stigma, and instability. The program is built around a different approach — one that prioritizes safety, dignity, and consistent support so trust can be rebuilt one day at a time.

The program was made possible by a Virginia Opioid Abatement Authority award to the City of Roanoke in partnership with Roanoke County.

"You can't just give someone the Suboxone or the Methadone and it be a cure all. You also have to have the counseling, h...
08/19/2026

"You can't just give someone the Suboxone or the Methadone and it be a cure all. You also have to have the counseling, have the therapy, have the peer who's been there — to understand the deeper parts of their life of why they were using." — Sergeant Jessica Mohr, HEART Program

That's why the HEART program combines medication-assisted treatment with counseling, peer recovery support, psychiatric services, and case management. The goal isn't simply to address substance use — it's to help individuals understand and overcome the challenges that contributed to it in the first place.

"You have to treat the whole person before they'll even start to think, 'I don't need these substances anymore.'" — Shel...
08/11/2026

"You have to treat the whole person before they'll even start to think, 'I don't need these substances anymore.'" — Shelly Morton, Probation Officer, Virginia Department of Corrections

The Danville-Pittsylvania Recovery Court was built around a simple understanding: recovery requires more than addressing substance use alone. Participants are connected with treatment, housing resources, mental health services, and other supports that help create the stability needed for lasting change.

The Danville-Pittsylvania Recovery Court was made possible by Virginia Opioid Abatement Authority awards to the City of Danville and Pittsylvania County.

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701 E. Franklin Street , Suite 803
Richmond, VA
23219

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