The Minister for Public Health, Wellbeing and the National Drugs Strategy, Jennifer Murnane O’Connor, has announced an additional €1.89 million in recurring funding to further enhance community-based drug services.
Through the Community Services Enhancement Fund, the additional funding will support drug services to meet increased treatment demand, with a focus on improving access to services in underserved communities, promoting evidence-based innovations in service design and delivery, and meeting the needs of people who use stimulant drugs.
Minister Murnane O’Connor said, “The six HSE Health Regions will each receive between €252,000 and €378,000 per year, with allocations based on population needs.
“By making drug treatment services available as part of primary care, we’re helping to reduce the stigma of drug use and to meet the diverse health needs of people using drugs.
“The additional funding meets the Programme for Government commitment to ‘increase funding for drug addiction services including local drug and alcohol taskforces to improve their effectiveness’. It also aligns with the report of the Citizens’ Assembly on Drugs Use.“
The funding will be allocated on a three-year cycle, with ongoing monitoring and evaluation, to ensure that services are effective in addressing the needs of people who use drugs.
The National Drug Treatment Reporting System (NDTRS), published by the Health Research Board, shows there were 13,104 cases in 2023, which is an increase of almost 50% from 8,922 in 2017.
