Road to solving Alaska's alcohol problem filled with roadblocks, challenges

Sober spaces are free community hubs built around fitness, music, meals, and other activities, are emerging as a complement to traditional addiction treatment. Organizations like the Phoenix and the Recovery Café Network offer environments where people in recovery can rebuild social connections and daily routines without the focus being on addiction itself. The Phoenix reports 83% of new members remain sober after three months, and enrollment has grown with new member enrollments rising from roughly 20,000 to over 433,000 between 2020 and 2025.

In an effort to promote health and wellness and reduce instances of officer misconduct, the Baltimore Police Departmenr launched a program in 2018 that connects officers with counseling, substance use treatment and other mental and physical health supports. Over the course of the program, more than 250 officers have signed themselves into a voluntary, confidential alcohol addiction program and been able to keep working.

The Stable Recovery program provides housing and recovery support for people suffering from addiction, as well as job training to prepare participants to work in the equine industry. The program offers a sense of therapeutic community to those in recovery, as well as newly trained workers to address the labor shortage in the equine industry.

The Mental Health Rebuilding and Restoring Initiative helps those struggling with drug addiction by showing them documentaries of others who have also struggled with addiction and how they managed to overcome it. The documentaries have since helped 50 people to stop using drugs. The Initiative also follows up with, monitors and encourages participants throughout their recovery journey.

Women and mothers experiencing addiction often face obstacles when seeking help and care. Several groups like M.I.R.A.C.L.E Mamas and Women Strong Recovery and Wellness among many others, provide safe spaces for women and mothers to seek recovery care and empowerment while also forming a sense of community.

Clean Slate Clinic is an in-home detox service that helps people receive a medicated detox plan including pharmaceuticals and vitamins, as well as daily telehealth sessions, rehabilitation support and check-ins. These detox services are currently undergoing a trial period that will tailor the program according to the unique needs of people in more rural and remote settings.

Alateen is designed for young people living people abusing substances, but since the COVID-19 pandemic, many of the teens the group serves have begun using alcohol and drugs themselves. To make it easier for youth to access the program, some schools are incorporating Alateen programs at school for students to easily participate.

Café Gozhóó is a restaurant and vocational training program at the Rainbow Treatment Center, which is operated by the White Mountain Apache tribe. Café Gozhóó uses the kitchen to teach therapeutic skills – connecting with ancestral foods, stress management, and teamwork – to people recovering from substance abuse. Café Gozhóó is also filling a critical gap in access to care as many mainstream recovery programs are located far from Native American communities and often lack counselors trained in culturally competent care.

The Mansfield Urban Minority Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Outreach Program (UMADAOP) helps individuals in recovery programs access housing through its Genesis Row Project. The non-profit currently owns six houses and following some renovations, plans to house 20 people.

Although COVID-19 has taken a toll on the healthcare industry, some providers and clinics have figured out a way to eliminate barriers during this time for those seeking treatment. According to the director of the Behavioral Health Institute at Harborview Medical Center in Washington, the healthcare industry has seen "at least five years worth of progress happen in four months" due to the implementation of telemedicine. While this isn't a longterm replacement for in-person visits, many doctors are reporting a rise in patient appointments via this system.