Senator Fred Akshar Announces Funding for the Addiction Center of Broome County

Senator Fred Akshar joined Carmela Pirich, the Executive Director of the Addiction Center of Broome County (ACBC), to announce $60,000 in state funding to combat the heroin crisis. The funding will expand its outpatient clinic and rehabilitation programs and start up a much needed detoxification unit. ACBC expects the detox unit to be up and running by this fall.

“After being elected last year, I took a bottom-up approach to educate myself on our community's needs in battling the heroin epidemic,” said Senator Akshar. “I’m proud that we could identify a hole in services and work together to fill it. ACBC's expansion is about building a bridge toward recovery and providing more support so that those battling addiction can get clean and stay clean.”

Broome County has not provided clients with ambulatory detoxification services since 2010, making this new unit a crucial gain for the Southern Tier. With the lack of a detoxification units in the area, individuals in need of services are sent to different locations across the state and may wait several weeks for a bed to become available.

“The Addiction Center of Broome County thanks Senator Akshar and OASAS for their timely support in securing funding for our new diagnostic unit.” said Carmela Pirich. “We are excited to be able to provide detoxification services, as this will assist individuals experiencing withdrawal symptoms to stabilize and provide much more successful treatment.”

The heroin epidemic is affecting families all over the country and the gaps in services for those suffering from addiction is adding to the problem. Opening the new diagnostic unit that provides ambulatory detox services will give people a place to feel safe and comfortable on their path to recovery.

“There is no silver bullet or dollar amount that will mend every life affected by addiction, if there was, it would be a lot easier,” said Senator Akshar. “But, as I've said from the beginning, if we put our differences aside and come together as a community at every level, we'll be able to fight this scourge and win.”