Folks out looking for addiction treatment centers in Utah may find the road to care getting smoother. The state government just created the Recovery Utah Initiative. This statewide effort coordinates addiction recovery, mental health care and homelessness prevention under one structure.
Utah is the first state to partner with President Trump’s Great American Recovery Initiative. Utah families dealing with a loved one’s substance use can take heart that the change promises fewer dead ends between agencies and more emphasis on people with lived experience shaping policy.
The Initiative in Action
The Recovery Utah Initiative Council is composed of leaders from several state agencies with two vice chairs who’ve personally experienced homelessness. The council coordinates reductions in drug deaths alongside homelessness after leaving state custody.
State Homeless Coordinator Tyler Clancy chairs the council.
“Better coordination across the system will help us save lives, restore families and give more Utahns a path to lasting recovery.”
Some Logistics
Cox framed the initiative as another step away from a “housing first” approach to homelessness, a position he has championed in recent years. Shelter is crucial but it can’t be the only thing, he asserted. Rather, recovery has to be a part of that process as a long-term goal.
He also addressed stigma directly.
“We tried to take the shame out of using drugs. That was the wrong approach. We need to take the shame out of recovery and that’s why we’re here today.”
The order also creates a Recovery-Ready Community designation for counties and cities to remove barriers to care and strengthens resources for the entire state.
Built With People Who’ve Been There
A recurring theme among those at the signing was that people with firsthand experience belong at the center of the effort. Amy Daeschel, director of business development for Odyssey House of Utah, a nonprofit focused on addiction recovery in Salt Lake City, called the initiative the first time the state is “starting to build from the ground up from a lived experience perspective.”
The biggest problem to long-term treatment that she’s seen is the stigma. Shame keeps people from picking up the phone and dialing.
She advised people to ask for help. It’s hard, but folks who meet with others who really understand can find the place that’s going to best serve them.
Finding Addiction Treatment in The Beehive State & Beyond
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