The Michigan State Police (MSP) has joined a new nationwide
movement that started in Gloucester, Massachusetts, in June 2015 when the
Gloucester Police Department realized they could not arrest their way out of
the opiate epidemic, and instead started inviting those needing treatment into
their building to ask for help.
Named the Angel Program, the successes they saw during their first year were incredible, with more than 400 individuals placed into treatment and partnerships established with more than 300 treatment centers in 20 states. There are currently more than 226 agencies that have implemented similar initiatives throughout the country.
Also developed was
the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (PAARI), a nonprofit
organization with a mission to support Gloucester Police addiction initiatives,
aid other police departments in implementing similar programs, and foster
dialogue around the unique opportunity for police departments to take direct
action against the disease of drug addiction in their communities.
When the MSP Angel
Program launched in October 2016 at the Gaylord Post, the MSP became the first
state police agency to partner with PAARI to implement the program statewide.
The MSP Angel Program allows
an individual struggling with drug and/or alcohol addiction to walk into a MSP
post during regular business hours to ask for assistance. MSP
Angel Program protocol mandates the utmost care, concern, and compassion are
afforded to those seeking treatment, and allows participants to hand over any
drugs or drug paraphernalia without the fear of arrest. Individuals accepted
into the MSP Angel Program are guided through a professional substance abuse
assessment and intake process to ensure proper treatment placement.
An “Angel” volunteer, who
is a member of the local community, is present to support the individual during
the process and to provide transportation to the identified treatment facility. Angels are vetted and trained by MSP
Community Service Troopers and are reimbursed for their mileage and meals
during transports to treatment facilities.
The MSP Angel Program is unique in that, through a
partnership with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
and their 10 Prepaid Inpatient Health Plans (PIHP), treatment services are
accessed through each PIHP’s treatment provider panel. This alleviates each post from having to
partner with local treatment centers, and instead provides participants with
the substance use disorder expertise of those employed by the PIHP Access
Centers. It also helps individuals without
insurance because the PIHPs have access to federal block grant money, administered
in Michigan by DHHS, to pay for treatment for the uninsured.
As of August 2017, the MSP Angel Program is active in the
northern Lower Peninsula, the Upper Peninsula, and the mid-Michigan area. The southwest corner and the western portion
of the state will soon be operational, followed by the central area (Flint/Saginaw/Bay
City/Midland), and finally, Metro Detroit.
The MSP Angel Program will be active statewide at each MSP post by
December 31, 2017.
To date the MSP Angel Program has successfully placed 22 participants.
The MSP Angel Program encourages municipal and county law
enforcement agencies to join this initiative.
Through sharing resources and training, we are working together to
ensure that each participant who struggles with addiction is given the proper
attention and priority to receive the care they need.
Colonel Kriste Kibbey Etue, Director of the MSP, states that,
“The Michigan State Police is very excited to be able to assist persons with
substance use disorders in this non-traditional way. However we can help those who desperately
need and want help, we are happy to do so.”
Additional information on the MSP Angel Program can be found
at www.michigan.gov/angelprogram.