Cherokee Nation Announces Plans for $18M Treatment Center

[Judi Lynn]

The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma has announced plans to use a portion of its $98 million in opioid settlement funds to construct a new treatment center in Tahlequah, Oklahoma

By Associated Press
| Feb. 13, 2023, at 12:24 p.m.



This artist rendering provided by the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma shows a new treatment facility. The Cherokee Nation, which is headquartered in Tahlequah in northeast Oklahoma, is the nation's largest Native American tribe, with more than 440,000 enrolled citizens. A portion of its $98 million in opioid settlement funds will be used to construct a treatment facility that will be completely operated by the tribe and provide no-cost treatment for Cherokee Nation citizens struggling with substance abuse. (Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma via AP)UNCREDITED

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — As a child welfare specialist for the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma more than a decade ago, Juli Skinner saw firsthand the impact of the opioid crisis on Cherokee families.

Parents who began using the powerful painkillers after a surgery or injury became hooked and were losing custody of their children, babies were being born addicted and young people who ended up in foster care were aging out of the system and becoming addicted themselves, resulting in a generational impact.

“We didn’t know what hit us. We were just floundering,” recalled Skinner, now the director of behavioral health for the Cherokee Nation, which is headquartered in Tahlequah in northeast Oklahoma.

Now, the nation's largest Native American tribe, with more than 440,000 enrolled citizens, plans to use a portion of its $98 million in opioid settlement funds to construct a 50-bed, 17,000-square-foot treatment facility in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, where the tribe is headquartered. The facility, which tribal officials announced on Monday, will be completely operated by the tribe and provide no-cost treatment for Cherokee Nation citizens struggling with substance abuse.

More:
https://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2023-02-13/cherokee-nation-announces-plans-for-18m-treatment-center

[SheltieLover]

1. Excellent! 👏👏👏👏

[beemerphill]

2. Excellent!!

The Indian Tribes have used their money wisely and their investments help everyone in the Tribe. Perhaps Washington could learn a few lessons from them.