Minneapolis First Step

The Minneapolis Health Department (MHD) is applying under Category 1b. The amount requested over the three-year grant period is $1,297,502.

MHD will work with the University of Minnesota Medical Center (UMMC), Red Lake Nation, and other partners to implement First Step, leveraging existing care systems, incorporating evidence-based treatments, and facilitating partnerships between psychosocial and medical providers to offer effective services to persons with Opioid Use Disorder (OUD). This project expands previous work by adding a Peer Recovery Navigator (PRN) as the initial connection at the ED, who will work with the patient until they are discharged and connected with services. The PRN will build rapport and negotiate immediate and short-term goals with the patient. They will provide close follow up with the patient at the community level and help them get established on medication. The goal will be to have the patient engage in Medication-Assisted Treatment through the delivery of a “bupe bundle” in the ED as an entry point to recovery, then connect them with support services in the community. The community-based project will be implemented through Red Lake Nation and serve as a referral for UMMC and first responders. An additional point of entry to First Step will be a mobile medical unit which will have the capacity to deliver MAT and serve both as a connection and referral point for the other components.

Minneapolis is experiencing a disproportionate impact from opioid-related overdoses compared to the rest of Minnesota. Preliminary 2020 data suggests the crude mortality rate of opioid-related drug overdose in Minneapolis more than doubled over 5 years, from 69 to 146 per 100,000 between 2016 and 2020. Two communities within Minneapolis are particularly impacted by the opioid crisis, American Indians, and African Americans. The three-year average (2018-2020) mortality rate of opioid overdose among American Indians (215 deaths per 100,000 persons) is almost nine times higher than the city-wide rate (24 deaths per 100,000 persons), and 12 times that of white residents. For the African American community, the average mortality rate, 41 deaths per 100,000 persons, more than doubles that of the white population.

One hundred percent of the budget will be used to implement evidence-based substance use disorder treatment related to opioids, stimulants, and other illicit drugs, such as MAT, as well as harm reduction services and recovery support services.

MHD is seeking priority consideration under priority 1(A) as noted in page 12 of the narrative.