Grants help uninsured with substance use disorder

In a region where about 15% of the population doesn't have health insurance and opioid overdose deaths have increased by 6.7 times in the past decade, it's not unreasonable to assume that many struggling with substance use are also unable to get coverage for treatment. In Northeast Tennessee, grants cover that financial burden. "The ability to have your opioid use disorder treated so you can preserve a job, a house, a family, it makes a difference," said Dr. Joyce Troxler, program director for the addiction medicine fellowship at the East Tennessee State University Department of Family Medicine. Under the first round of community grants from the Tennessee Opioid Abatement Council in March 2024, ETSU received roughly $4 million for recovery resources. Part of that money helps uninsured patients pay for opioid use disorder medication through places like Troxler's clinic. Before that, the physician said, the inability to cover medication and subsequent financial burden meant patient inconsistency in attending appointments, access to medication and dosage. "[That] means their road to recovery is a bit longer and a bit rockier because they're not getting all the support that they need," she said. Now, Troxler added, "part of the struggle is taken away, knowing that we are able to get better traction with people because they're able to come back and see us more consistently." At Overmountain Recovery, a joint project run by Ballad Health and ETSU, State Opioid Response grants have helped cover substance use treatment since 2019. These federal funds, called SOR grants, are administered through the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. The department was given more than $31 million in 2025. The ability to cover this treatment is "huge" for patients, Ballad Health Executive Director of Addiction Services Mike Deitschmann said. "You never know when that moment will arrive when somebody wants to quit," he said. "And we want to be there for them so that they can do that." Deitschmann added that about 25% of the facility's more than 800 patients are on SOR grants. To qualify, Tennessee residents must be within 138% of the federal poverty level and be uninsured or have insurance that falls outside of the major ones the recovery center usually uses. SOR grants are limited and the funds can be reallocated, Deitschmann said, so the facility acts as "cautious stewards" of the money. It generally aims to have people under that grant for no more than two years, a time period that Deitschmann said allows patients plenty of time to get out of crisis and transition to other forms of insurance. "The last thing I want to do is get to a point where somebody walks in off the street, has the intent to start a program, but I've already allocated all their money to other patients who've had it for quite a bit longer," he said. If someone does need treatment beyond the SOR grant, other forms of financial assistance at the facility can reduce cost to a similar price. Being able to help patients is motivating, Deitschmann said. "These people that don't have those means, the opportunity to serve them and to help them to get a leg up and then get back into the flow of where they want to be and what they can be for their family," he said, "Wow."