Detroit COSSUP Diversion to Housing

Over the past decade, more than 2,000 Detroiters have been lost to fatal
drug overdose, and over 7,000 Detroiter’s have experienced an opioid-involved emergency since
the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Illicit drug poisonings cost an estimated $193 billion
annually in the United States and nearly $1 billion annually in Detroit alone; this includes costs
in healthcare, treatment programs, traffic crashes, foster care, and criminal justice economic
burdens. The actual cost to the community can be assumed to be higher when accounting for
indirect costs (e.g. lost wages, reduced productivity, and child drug endangerment), and the
intangible societal costs of the drug crisis, such as grief, fear, and social scarring, are
immeasurable. The pandemic also exacerbated housing inequities particularly among
precariously housed and homeless Black and Brown young adults under the age of 34. The
Detroit HOME (Housing, Overdose prevention, Managed care, and Empowerment) Project will
galvanize the resources of the City of Detroit Housing and Revitalization Department, 36th
District Court Specialty Court, Changing Lives And Staying Sober, and a network of public
health, recovery support, and treatment providers, to combat the drug and housing crisis in
Detroit. The aim of the project is to prevent fatal drug poisonings, ensure pathways to permanent
housing, and nurture holistic wellness opportunities to sustain recovery among Specialty Court
participants. The Detroit HOME Project seeks to engage 500 participants and stakeholders in
direct wraparound care, training, education, and strategy development as part of its mission to
advance behavioral health equity and diversion to care strategies.