Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon To Participate In Virtual Webinar On Recovering From Substance Use Disorders During COVID-19

Published on July 20, 2020

Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon, whose administration has made combating the opioid epidemic and its toll on individuals and families a priority, is a panelist in an upcoming the upcoming virtual webinar about the challenges and solutions for providing recovery support services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon

Please see the release below about the webinar, provided by the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey, and how to register:

NJ Frontline Fighters Against Opioid Addiction to Hold Virtual Webinar to Share Challenges, Solutions for Providing Recovery Support Services during the COVID-19 Pandemic

July 23rd Webinar is Second in Four-Part Knock Out Opioid Abuse Series

MILLBURN, NJ ” The Knock Out Opioid Abuse Webinar Series will turn its focus to recovery from opioid addiction in its upcoming webinar, Substance Use Disorder Recovery During COVID-19: Perspectives from the Front Lines, being held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, July 23.

The webinar is part of the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey and The Horizon Foundation for New Jersey's Knock Out Opioid Abuse initiative and is the second of four webinars being held in collaboration with the New Jersey Coordinator of Addiction Responses and Enforcement Strategies (NJ CARES) and the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General.

The webinar will focus on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on recovery, as observed by professionals on the front lines of the law enforcement, medical and recovery fields.

As the COVID-19 crisis continues, it is imperative that we work together to prevent isolation and other mental health stressors from claiming even more lives, said Attorney General Grewal. These webinars provide an opportunity for all of us involved in the fight against addiction to share resources and to remind everyone that treatment and recovery services remain open and available during the pandemic.

Supporting recovery is a vital part of solving the current opioid epidemic facing this country and, like many other aspects of everyday life, has been disrupted by the pandemic, PDFNJ Executive Director Angelo Valente said. This webinar will provide participants a better understanding of how to address challenges to recovery and the resources available to help those who are struggling or have struggled with addiction.

Speakers will include Morris County Sheriff James Gannon; Dr. Erin Zerbo, Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and Director at the Northern NJ Medication-Assisted Treatment Center of Excellence; and Morgan Thompson, M.S.W., Chief Executive Officer of Prevention Links.

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, through its philanthropic arm, The Horizon Foundation for New Jersey, has been collaborating with PDFNJ on a two-year Knock Out Opioid Abuse initiative to address the opioid epidemic through community outreach, prescriber education, parent education and a statewide awareness campaign.

The Knock Out Opioid Abuse Town Hall Series brings together experts on the opioid epidemic from various fields, including law enforcement, the medical community, government, prevention, treatment and recovery for events throughout the state. PDFNJ and Horizon have expanded the initiative in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, offering a webinar series to help continue the conversation about the opioid crisis.

In 2019, 3,021 people in New Jersey died from suspected drug overdoses, a vast majority of those deaths involved some form of opioid.

PDFNJ and Horizon kicked off their collaboration with NJ CARES and the Office of the Attorney General with a June 11 webinar featuring Attorney General Grewal. The final two webinars of the collaborative series are Prescribing Opioids in the Time of COVID-19, which will be held on August 20 and Athletes and Opioids: The Impact and Risks, which will be held on September 24.

To learn more about the Knock Out Opioid Abuse initiative and to register for the webinar, please visit https://knockoutopioidabuse.drugfreenj.org.

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Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey: Best known for its statewide substance use prevention advertising campaign, the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey is a private not-for-profit coalition of professionals from the communications, corporate and government communities whose collective mission is to reduce demand for illicit drugs in New Jersey through media communication. To date, more than $100 million in broadcast time and print space has been donated to the Partnership's New Jersey campaign, making it the largest public service advertising campaign in New Jersey's history. Since its inception, the Partnership has garnered 180 advertising and public relations awards from national, regional and statewide media organizations.

About Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey: Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, the state's oldest and largest health insurer is a tax-paying, not-for-profit health service corporation, providing a wide array of medical, dental, vision and prescription insurance products and services. Horizon BCBSNJ is leading the transformation of health care in New Jersey by working with doctors and hospitals to deliver innovative, patient-centered programs that reward the quality, not quantity, of care patients receive. Learn more at www.HorizonBlue.com. Horizon BCBSNJ is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association serving more than 3.4 million members.

About The Horizon Foundation for New Jersey: The Horizon Foundation for New Jersey is committed to working alongside those who can help us improve our neighbors' health, inform their health decisions and inspire them to lead healthier, more fulfilling lives. The Foundation's funding pillars are Caring, Connecting and Creating. Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey is the sole member of The Horizon Foundation for New Jersey, both of which are independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. For more information, please visit www.Horizonblue.com/Foundation

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