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Town of New Gloucester
385 Intervale Road, New Gloucester, ME 04260
(207) 926-4126 (phone) / (207) 926-4136 (fax)
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Town of Poland
1231 Maine Street, Poland, ME 04274
(207) 998-4601 (phone) / (207) 998-2002 (fax)
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Budget Update
My committee, Appropriations and Financial Affairs, worked through the weekend to negotiate bipartisan changes to the Governor's budget. We were able to reach agreement on $300 payments to most people who worked in 2020. This is for people who filed a tax return with earned income of less than $75,000 for singles, $112,500 for heads of households, and $150,000 for those married filing jointly. We did this without cutting services. In fact, we increased spending on healthcare and the environment without increasing taxes, and without borrowing. We also increased State payments to towns and schools. It will be up to school boards and select boards if they want to use this money to cut property taxes or increase services. This proposal will be voted on by the entire Legislature on Wednesday, June 30. It is estimated that these payments will go out sometime in December
Maine Department of Health and Human Services Takes Action in Response to Recent Child Deaths
The Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) announced last week that it is taking action following the deaths of four young children in Maine.
The Department has asked Casey Family Programs – a national leader in improving child safety and the wellbeing of children – to assist the Department in its investigation of these deaths, to evaluate existing child safety policies in the context of the deaths, and to offer interim policy recommendations that could be implemented by the State of Maine to support child and family safety.
The four children, who were all four years or younger, died within the past month from accidents or serious injuries. The deaths occurred on June 20 in Stockton Springs, on June 17 in Temple, on June 6 in Old Town, and on June 1 in Brewer.
Additionally, as separately announced, in response to emerging state and national trends, the Department will intensify its health education campaigns in response to pandemic-related challenges. Despite progress in turning the tide on the pandemic, evidence from Maine and across the country continues to suggest that people are experiencing heightened mental health and substance use issues, including parents and children. Among other actions, the Department will extend and broaden its StrengthenME campaign, which offers free stress management and resiliency resources to anyone in Maine experiencing stress reactions to the pandemic, and is encouraging anyone seeking help to call (207) 221-8198 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week.
Founded in 1966, Casey Family Programs works in all 50 states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and with tribal nations across North America to influence long-lasting improvements to the well-being of children, families, and the communities where they live. The organization focuses on four specific goals, including to:
- safely reduce the need for foster care in the United States by 50 percent;
- demonstrate how every child can have a safe, supportive, and permanent family;
- support more effective public investments in strengthening families to keep children safely in their own homes and communities; and
- promote a shared responsibility for ensuring the wellbeing of every child and family across the nation.
As is standard policy, the Department is conducting its own review of child deaths. Casey Family Programs will assist the Department with its investigation, bringing to bear its national perspective by using a nationally recognized model to improve child safety. Maine’s Child Welfare Services Ombudsman has agreed to participate in this process as well.
The work by Casey Family Programs will include an evaluation of whether changes in the short term are needed in Maine’s Child and Family Services Strategic Plan. The Department will publicly release any recommended changes to the Plan. The Plan, adopted in 2019 following a comprehensive evaluation by the Department’s Office of Child and Family Services (OCFS) and other stakeholders, includes improvements in policies and practices to ensure child safety; expanded staffing and training; increased focus on family wellbeing; and a sharper focus on permanency, which means limiting the time a child is in a temporary placement. The OCFS has added about 60 additional staff since the Plan’s implementation. Furthermore, Maine is on target to implement the Federal Family First Prevention Services Act this fall, which will expand prevention services to help keep children and families healthy and safe, and prevent the need for children to come into the care and custody of the State.
Anyone concerned about child abuse or neglect should call the DHHS’ 24-hour hotline at 1-800-452-1999. Calls may be made anonymously.
Free Text Alert Program to Prevent Overdose Deaths
The Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and Partnership to End Addiction recently launched a free texting service that alerts Maine residents to any sudden increase in overdoses in their counties and connects them with resources that can save lives, support those struggling with substance use, and promote recovery.
Residents, including parents, caregivers, medical professionals, first responders, community groups, and those struggling with substance use, in all Maine counties can sign up for the Partnership’s SPIKE Auto Text Program. Individuals can sign up by texting SPIKE to 1 (855) 963-5669 (855-9-OD-KNOW) and following the prompts.
The program will link them to resources through Maine’s OPTIONS initiative, which is placing mobile response teams in each Maine county to engage communities with high rates of drug overdoses to promote harm reduction strategies, connect people directly to recovery services and treatment, and distribute naloxone, the lifesaving overdose medication. The text messaging system can help to prevent overdose deaths by directing individuals to the Know Your OPTIONS Web site, where they can learn how to get a naloxone kit or contact the OPTIONS liaison in their county.
Those who sign up will receive free notifications on their mobile device if three or more fatal or non-fatal overdoses occur in their county within a 24-hour period.
Maine is the first state to launch the program statewide. Partnership to End Addiction is piloting the program in three counties in New York, and one county in Tennessee, with plans to expand nationwide.
The SPIKE Auto Text Program uses data from the national Overdose Detection Mapping Application Program (ODMAP), which was developed by the Washington/Baltimore High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area to collect and analyze reports about drug overdoses from communities. Maine was one of the first states to implement ODMAP statewide, with approximately 80 agencies now signed up to provide real-time overdose data while also protecting personally identifying information.
The Maine Attorney General’s Office recently released a new report showing that 504 deaths were caused by drug overdoses in 2020, a 33% increase over 380 in 2019. In addition to launching the SPIKE Auto Text Program, Maine is taking numerous actions to support people with substance use disorder and save lives, including expanding the OPTIONS program; purchasing 168,767 doses and distributing 89,336 doses of naloxone through public health and harm reduction organizations, which helped reverse 2,217 reported opioid overdoses; recruiting and training more than 530 new recovery coaches; increasing the number of recovery residences from 101 to 120, and the number of recovery community centers from 9 to 13; and continuing to invest in the opioid response and mental health services.
For additional information about Maine’s OPTIONS program, the Partnership to End Addiction, and ODMAP, click here.
VisitMaine.com
Looking for places to go, things to do, or where to stay across Maine, go to visitmaine.com. This site will help you plan your trip to see everything that the Pine Tree State has to offer. The Maine Tourism Association has additional information that you may enjoy as you take advantage of Maine’s many seasonal opportunities.
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