Wicomico County receives funding to re-purpose Poplar Hill Facility

SALISBURY, Md. – The Wicomico County Health Department has announced that the Hogan-Rutherford Administration has awarded the county $972,684 to go towards repurposing the Popular Hill Facility to help those battling addiction.

We’re told the project will serve the eight lower counties of Maryland, whose overdose fatalities totaled just over 100 in 2017.

The Poplar Hill Facility will provide 24/7 addiction services, to include medication withdrawal management, residential treatment and recovery, and vocational support. The goal of this project is to allow individuals with a substance use disorder to pursue treatment when they are ready, as opposed to being put on a waiting list and having to return at another time.

The recovery housing and services offered at the facility will also give individuals the motivation to live successful lives following their discharge, with the main goal being to decrease recidivism. This center would act as the only 24/7 accessible treatment facility for the roughly 352,000 people that reside in this area.

Over the last decade, drug and alcohol related deaths in Maryland have continued to rise, with 2,282 Maryland residents losing their lives in 2017. Even though there isn’t one single solution to this crisis, offering additional treatment options for those dealing with addiction, like this project, could significantly improve outcomes and possibly even reduce overdose deaths on the Eastern Shore of Maryland.