Gathering in Olympia on Wednesday, hundreds of advocates plan to meet with lawmakers for the 4th Annual Recovery Advocacy Day.
Legislators will hear from people calling for continued recovery support services from housing to employment assistance.
“We’re bringing a lot of people that have been helped by recovery and touched by addiction who want to make it known that this is a priority for our state and something that our lawmakers need to be aware of,” said Ronnie Davis of Recovery Cafe.
David Coffey is the Executive Director of Recovery Café, a space filled by hundreds of members working to stay drug and alcohol-free. Coffey said there are three pillars to address substance use disorder; prevention, treatment, and recovery support. Coffey will speak with lawmakers about the recovery support component.
“As a country, and Washington is no exception, we have continually un-invested in the recovery support piece so we do invest in treatment and prevention, but you really need that third leg of the stool if you want to address the problem holistically and effectively,” Coffey said.
Coffey is particularly excited about a house bill that will significantly increase the amount of resources for recovery support services, including a piece that will provide additional housing support.
“It’s not that on the day you finish treatment that you are out and on your own again, but that there are other places and support services that you can access to help you stay drug and alcohol-free," he said.
Coffey said he is looking forward to the opportunity to remind lawmakers that this investment is important and it has the potential to change and save lives.
“My hope is that everyone does care because essentially every American is affected by substance abuse and mental health challenges,” Coffey said. “There’s an opportunity for us as a state to significantly impact thousands of lives for good, for generations to come.”