A state initiative designed to help Kentuckians find and retain employment while recovering from opioid-use-disorder is moving forward. It’s part of the Kentucky Opioid Response Effort, or KORE.
The Kentucky Chamber of Commerce hosted the training program Wednesday. Chief Engagement Officer Beth Kuhn with the Cabinet for Health and Family Services noted some 20 people will be fanning out across the Commonwealth to help those in recovery get jobs and assist employers retain those employees. Kuhn said it’s not about changing treatment strategies, but instead, recognizing recovery needs. “It’s about working with what treatment people need, but making sure the employment setting can accommodate that, just like it would with any chronic illness,” said Kuhn
Kentucky Chamber President Dave Adkisson said employment is one of the best treatment strategies because it supplies day to day structure. He said tens of thousands of Kentuckians recovering from use of opioids remain on the sidelines while employers need workers. “Obviously they need employment, but we need them in the workforce to help our economy grow. I talk to company after company that would add another shift to their production or they would add another piece of equipment and get a new product line going, if they could just find the number of workers,” explained Adkisson.
Adkisson says the business community has found that the opioid epidemic is not only a law enforcement, public health, and mental health problem. He says it’s also a workforce issue.?
Here's Beth Kuhn to more fully explain the KORE concept:
Chamber President Dave Adkisson talks to Stu Johnson about the business sector needs for capable workers:
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