Police officers and other first responders sometimes lack good options when they encounter people with substance abuse problems or mental health disorders. This month, the White House introduced a model law aimed at encouraging first responders to use “deflection,” an approach that steers people with those problems into treatment instead of locking them up behind bars. It’s a strategy that one Tri-State community has been using for nearly a decade.
Joining Cincinnati Edition to talk about deflection and how it works are retired Colerain Township Chief of Police and Director of Public Safety Daniel Meloy; Cordata Healthcare Innovations Vice President for Strategy and Partnerships Kelly Firesheets; and Hamilton County Addiction Response Coalition Program Administrator Meagan Gosney.
Listen to Cincinnati Edition live at noon M-F. Audio for this segment will be uploaded after 4 p.m. ET.
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