Elk Grove Village Cares, a groundbreaking initiative launched five years ago to encourage those with substance abuse problems to seek and receive proper treatment, will now serve a broader audience thanks to an expansion effort announced on June 4 by Village officials.
The program that has helped make 173 connections to the road to recovery from addiction to opioids, narcotics and alcohol will now be open and available to adolescents aged 12-17.
Under the initiative, anyone seeking treatment for their addiction or substance abuse disorder can seek it through the Elk Grove Village Police Department. Individuals looking to get on the road to recovery can present themselves at the Elk Grove Village Police Department either in person or via phone. Those seeking help will not face arrest. Rather, police officers and counselors will connect individuals to treatment programs.
Under new program guidelines unveiled on June 4, adolescents seeking substance abuse treatment via Elk Grove Village Cares must be accompanied by their parent or legal guardian when they enter the program. If an unaccompanied adolescent arrives at the Elk Grove Village Police Department seeking treatment, that individual’s parents or legal guardians will be contacted before further action is taken. In order for an adolescent to enter the program, a parent or legal guardian must authorize his/her participation.
Elk Grove Village Cares will partner with Rosecrance and the Kenneth Young Center for adolescent treatment services. Both specialize in mental health and substance abuse services. Rosecrance offers inpatient services out of their Rockford location as well as outpatient services in Northbrook and Warrenville. Kenneth Young Center will offer outpatient services and programs.
“We all know that the disease of addiction can afflict anyone, regardless of age,” said Elk Grove Village Mayor Craig Johnson. “That’s why we are expanding Elk Grove Village Cares to include young people. Thanks to the partnerships we’ve established with Rosecrance and the Kenneth Young Center, we now have the capacity to offer assistance to get anyone the help they need at no charge to them.”
The expansion plans also include making Narcan, the overdose-reversing medication that can be administered via a nasal spray, more available at no cost to members of the public. Village officials unveiled a Narcan dispensing machine that will be placed in the lobby of the Elk Grove Village Police Department, located at 901 Wellington Avenue in Elk Grove Village. The dispenser, which is very similar to a traditional vending machine, is accessible to the public 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It holds 54 Narcan kits, each kit containing two units, and will be maintained and restocked on a regular basis by the Kenneth Young Center—one of Elk Grove
Village Cares’ substance abuse treatment partners.
The expansion of Elk Grove Village Cares is made possible in part with $500,000 in federal community project funding which Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi helped secure for Fiscal Year 2023. The program, which is funded almost completely with local, state and federal grants, is accessible to everyone regardless of their insurance status or their ability to pay for the treatment.
Village officials, Board members and Elk Grove Village Cares’ treatment partners made the announcement at a community celebration of the five-year anniversary of the program that has given access to substance abuse treatment to scores of residents.
“On behalf of our entire Board of Trustees, our staff and our community, I am thankful for the work we have done to address the opioid and addiction epidemic, one of the most serious public health challenges we have locally and nationally,” said Mayor Johnson. “Elk Grove Village Cares has saved lives and has changed lives for the better. As we head into the future, we will continue to find ways to tackle this problem with creativity, innovation and compassion.”
Elk Grove Village Cares goals include reducing the number of opioid related deaths and overdoses in Elk Grove Village, providing more “points of entry” for people suffering from addiction and help them access the resources they need to begin the very difficult work of recovery, establishing and strengthening community-based resources for those in recovery and their family members and educating residents about the disease of addiction. If an individual seeking treatment is under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or in possession of illegal substances, the Village will not make an arrest. Instead, the Village will work to identify a treatment facility and assist in the first steps to recovery.
