Attorney General Jack Conway on Wednesday toured Chrysalis House, a facility in Lexington, Ky. that provides substance abuse treatment for pregnant women. The facility is receiving $600,000 over two years from settlements Attorney General Conway secured from two pharmaceutical companies.
"The money from this settlement is allowing Chrysalis House to continue operating and providing treatment to 200 women and children each year," General Conway said. "I appreciate the opportunity to see first-hand how this investment will impact the lives of women and children. I am proud of the women seeking treatment at Chrysalis House. They are working hard to break the cycle of addiction."
Chrysalis House will receive $600,000 from the settlement funds that are being administered by the Substance Abuse Treatment Advisory Committee, which Gov. Steve Beshear created by executive order and is chaired by Attorney General Conway.
Chrysalis House is Kentucky’s oldest and largest licensed substance abuse treatment program for women, specializing in the treatment of pregnant and parenting women. Chrysalis House has been providing treatment for more than 36 years. It is compromised of three residential facilities, a 40-unit apartment complex, 16 scattered-site apartments, a community center and two playgrounds.
"Chrysalis House is one of the few programs that allows babies to stay with their mothers while in treatment, and we are thrilled to receive this funding from Attorney General Conway," said Executive Director Lisa Minton. "Investing in a mother is investing in a family and investing in a family is investing in a future."
Treatment and childcare programs at Chrysalis House are licensed by the Kentucky Department of Health and Family Services. Credentialed staff treat both mental health and substance use disorders using evidence-based practices. It has been evaluated by the University of Kentucky Center on Drug and Alcohol Research. Chrysalis House has been hailed as a national model for job readiness and placement and received a Science and Service Award from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
History of Settlement Funds
Attorney General Conway settled cases against two pharmaceutical companies for $32 million. The court orders filed in both settlements require that the funds be spent on drug treatment programs.
Nineteen million dollars from the settlement created the KY Kids Recovery grant program. The grants will fund comprehensive juvenile substance abuse treatment programs, both expanding treatment beds at existing facilities and creating new juvenile treatment programs with the full continuum of care, including intensive outpatient and follow-up care centers. Submissions for grants are currently being accepted. To learn more about the grant program visit www.ag.ky.gov/kykidsrecovery.
The settlement is also providing $500,000 to complete construction of a Recovery Kentucky center in Ashland, $2.5 million for almost 900 scholarships over two years to Recovery Kentucky centers, and $560,000 to create 14 drug-free homes for people completing and transitioning out of residential substance abuse treatment programs.
In addition, the following entities will receive funds over the next two years from the settlement:
- $6 million to administer and upgrade KASPER, Kentucky’s electronic prescription drug monitoring program.
- $400,000 over two years to support substance abuse treatment for pregnant women by Independence House in Corbin.
- $1.5 million to the University of Kentucky to develop best practices for juvenile substance abuse treatment providers.
- $1 million to develop a school-based substance abuse screening tool with the Kentucky Department of Education to intervene with at-risk children before they enter judicial or social services systems.
- $250,000 to create a database to evaluate outcomes of juvenile treatment.
For more information about Attorney General Conway’s efforts to fight substance abuse, visit www.ag.ky.gov/rxabuse.
