Fairfax, VA–The George Mason University College of Health and Human Services has received a $500,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to implement the Rural Opioid Telehealth Project, which will serve an estimated 177,000 rural, low-income residents of Virginia and West Virginia. The project will train medical professionals on how to appropriately prescribe opioids, screen for and identify the risk of opioid use disorder, and deliver treatment.
The telehealth initiative will be carried out through Mason and Partners Clinics and the new Population Health Center, which will serve as hub-sites for the telehealth training. The grant will enable Mason to connect medical professionals with low-income residents of Virginia and West Virginia who have limited access to specialized care, yet are in high-risk areas for opioid use disorder and chronic conditions. In addition to the main goal of addressing opioid dependency in rural areas, the grant will also help provide other telehealth services to underserved patients.
