RED LAKE DENTENTION MAT PROGRAM

The Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians is a federally recognized tribe located in northern Minnesota. With this funding the tribe will develop, implement, and operate a medication-assisted treatment (MAT) program in the Red Lake Detention Center. Red Lake is phasing in a new, harm-reduction-based approach to the opioid crisis. The Zhawenimin Opioid Crisis Response Plan is a comprehensive guide to making this paradigm shift. The Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians aims to save lives and heal the Red Lake community by removing barriers like fear and stigma, creating safe spaces, interweaving programs and services to benefit Red Lake members, and drawing upon their cultural traditions to heal their people. The proposed Detention Center MAT program is crucial to the overall plan. MAT is the use of medication in combination with counseling and behavioral therapy, which has been proven effective in the treatment of opioid use disorders. MAT, utilizing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved medications methadone, buprenorphine, or naltrexone, is considered a central component of the standard of care for the treatment of individuals with substance use disorders. The use of MAT increases the likelihood of successful treatment for individuals with substance use disorders and reduces morbidity and mortality.

Outcomes for incarcerated Native Americans are below average: in Beltrami County where the Red Lake Indian Reservation is located, inmate deaths are usually among the highest in the state alongside Hennepin County. A 2023 inmate death highlighted the need for improved health care at the Red Lake Detention Center.