Thousands of Hoosiers struggle with addiction during pandemic, but there’s hope

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Thousands of Hoosiers are struggling with addiction, and the pandemic isn’t helping.

However, there are some rays of hope.

Brandon George knows exactly how it feels to battle through the coronavirus pandemic while simultaneously fighting addiction. He’s in recovery himself.

“It’s been a struggle, overall,” said George, director of the Indiana Addiction Issues Coalition.

George said roughly 500,000 Hoosiers rely on in-person meetings and connections to help keep them on the road to recovery.

“During this time, it’s much, much harder to be connected so it presents tremendous roadblocks for people that are in recovery, to stay connected and especially those trying to access care,” George said.

Since Indiana is under a statewide stay-at-home order, George says, some 500 in-person 12-step meetings a week have stopped in greater Indianapolis. Now, many faith-based groups and independent organizations serving people in addiction recovery have to depend on virtual help.

There are now daily virtual recovery gatherings for Hoosiers in need.

“The benefits of switching over to Zoom-type of meetings is they’re accessible wherever you are.” George said.

In March, the federal government decided to allow patients to get prescriptions for medicine that helps curb withdrawal symptoms via virtual doctor’s visit instead of in-person.

“I think everybody can appreciate that we need access to life-saving medication, and that’s exactly what this is.” George said.

Even with easier access, it’s still a challenge. George says he recently talked with a community mental health center that didn’t yet know of the policy change.

“I said, ‘Hey, are you prescribing buprenorphine via telemedicine now?’ They said, ‘No, you have to have the in-person visit.’ I said, ‘No, it’s our lucky day. It changed. You don’t. It’s our lucky day,’” George said.

In the meantime, George hopes Hoosiers in recovery who don’t have access to phones, iPads or a Wifi connection are not left out.

Indiana’s Next Level Recovery program

  • Call 211 for help 24/7 or click here to go to Connect2Help.
  • Call the Indiana Addiction Hotline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357) or visit here to chat live with a representative.
  • Through a partnership between Indiana 211 and OpenBeds, people seeking treatment for substance use disorder can be immediately connected with available inpatient or residential treatment services.
  • The Indiana Recovery Network also has extensive available resources.

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