This week from OCHE + partners: October 23, 2026
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MA Bureau of Substance Addiction Services, Office of Community Health & Equity (OCHE).
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October 23, 2026 at 12:12 pm by MA Bureau of Substance Addiction Services, Office of Community Health & Equity (OCHE)
From OCHE + BSAS
🗓️ Join us for remaining OCHE Community Office Hours during 2026!
This Monday, October 26 from 10am-12pm we’ll welcome Shaquera’s Story, an organization led by BIPOC individuals with lived experience in intimate partner violence and substance use as we close out Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
On November 23 from 10am-12pm the iDECIDE team will share about this youth curriculum and their hopes for adapting it in partnership with faith organizations. We hope individuals representing or participating in faith communities will participate and share your thoughts to co-design this initiative.
Following a successful dialogue format in September, on December 21 from 10am-12pm we’re excited to spotlight our newest team member’s expertise. We invite community partners into a conversation about how harm reduction can be crucial during the holiday season as we navigate a time that can bring both joy and connection, as well as complicated emotions and experiences.
See and share flyers for each attached, and register for one or all three sessions here!
🗓️ We needed to reschedule this week’s LEAP Orientation – upcoming sessions will meet next Tuesday, October 27 from 6-7:30pm and November 9 from 10:15-11:45am. All are welcome as part of LEAP onboarding, or to learn more about BSAS’ Living Expertise Advisory Pool.
🗓️ BSAS TGE CAB Community Consulting Office Hours on November 13 from 12-1pm offer an opportunity to meet members of our Trans + Gender Expansive Community Advisory Board (TGE CAB). Register here to attend, and see the attached flyer for more info.
🤝 In OCHE, we want to support you in ways that feel accessible and useful to you. Based on your interests, needs, and capacity you may want to participate in any or all our initiatives. Attached you’ll find an Engage with OCHE menu of current programming, and invite you to opt into any you find appealing as well as share with others.
ℹ️ MA Health Connector open enrollment starts October 23 and ends January 23. Learn more about available plans and how to sign up for coverage on the MA Health Connector website, and he Connector’s “Navigator” program can help uninsured and current Health Connector members with choosing a plan and/or enrolling in multiple languages.
⚠️ DPH Clinical Advisory – BSAS recently issued a clinical advisory on the presence of medetomidine in the unregulated opioid supply in Massachusetts. The medetomidine clinical advisory is available on mass.gov and is also attached. What to know:
- Medetomidine is a sedative being mixed with the unregulated opioid supply.
- There have been increasing reports of medetomidine in the unregulated opioid supply across the US and clinical cases of severe withdrawal due to medetomidine exposure among people who use drugs in several US cities.
- In Massachusetts, there have been several confirmed cases and additional suspected cases of medetomidine withdrawal in emergency department and hospitalized patients.
🗓️ BSAS’ Women + Family Services team is pleased to share an upcoming Fathers in Recovery training opportunity taking place on November 2–3 in Worcester. The training focuses on supporting fathers in recovery from substance use disorders by strengthening parenting skills, promoting emotional engagement with their children, and building skills to facilitate supportive group discussions. Learn more and register here.
🗓️ We’re proud and grateful that our BSAS colleague Analilia Bautista, who serves as Secretary for DPH’s Veterans and Allies Employee Resource Group, will co-lead this year’s Veterans Day Celebration on November 5 from 1-2PM. The virtual event is open to all, and will feature guest speakers sharing their military experiences plus a special tribute honoring those who have served. Join from Zoom Workplace app – Zoom.
🤝 The deadline to participate in Massachusetts’ first Imani Breakthrough cohort has been extended to October 31. This adult wellness and recovery program supports participants impacted by substance use in building community, working toward personal goals, and connecting with resources. See the attached flyer for more details, and contact joryan.franklin@bmc.org with any questions.
From our partners
🗓️ A reminder from RIZE that Navigating the Storm: Strategic Responses to the Evolving Federal Policy Landscape will take place on October 27 from 12-1:30pm on Zoom. This 90-minute webinar, led by legal, policy, and advocacy experts, will provide tools to help behavioral health and human service organizations in Massachusetts navigate fast-moving federal communications and policy shifts – register here.
💰 Also from RIZE, the deadline to apply for Mosaic Municipal Matching Grants is November 6 – find details and application materials here.
💰 Funding alert! Applications are now open for the Massachusetts Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) Rural Partner request for applications (RFA). RHTP is a five-year federal investment designed to strengthen rural health across Massachusetts, and the many eligible entities include rural-located community-based organizations and social service organizations. To application materials, please visit the RHTP Rural Partners RFA page on COMMBUYS and apply by October 26 at 5pm.
ℹ️ SAMHSA has released an introductory guide for families titled Navigating Mental Health and Substance Use Care, highlighting common experiences of family members who are navigating mental health and/or substance use treatment and recovery support with their loved ones. This guide also highlights the value of engaging with family peer support, family-led organizations and broader peer support resources. See the guide here.
🗣️ The Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) invites you to help choose a new tagline for the Healthy Incentives Program (HIP). Respond to their survey in English, Haitian Creole, Spanish, Portuguese, Simplified Chinese, or Vietnamese by October 23.
ℹ️ On the heels of Indigenous Peoples Day and as we approach Trans Awareness Month in November, we’re pleased to share a Map of Gender Diverse Cultures from PBS. Check out the map to learn more about how many cultures see gender diversity.
💰 RIZE Massachusetts is accepting applications for the 2026 Joanne Peterson Award through October 30. This prestigious award, established by the RIZE Board of Directors, honors nonprofit organizations demonstrating exceptional dedication to improving the lives of individuals and families affected by the overdose crisis. The selected organization will receive a one-time grant of $25,000 to support its impactful work. If your organization meets the criteria outlined in the application guidelines, RIZE invites you to apply.
🗓️ From the Western MA Health Equity Network, will host a double feature documentary screening on November 5 from 4:30-7:30pm in Springfield. The two films, MOSAIC and Promises of the Revolution, share important local stories about fights for justice. See the attached flyer for more details, RSVP (requested but not required) to risa@umass.edu.
💡Have you connected with HRIA’s Behavioral Health + Racial Equity (BeHERE) Initiative? The collection of archived and live resources can help you transform policies and practices in substance use prevention, treatment, harm reduction, and recovery at your workplaces and in your communities. Check out all BEHere has to offer, including an upcoming Supporting People Who Use Drugs training on October 20 in Worcester.
🗣️ Our friends at The Children’s Room, a child and family grief center located in Arlington and serving communities across Massachusetts, extend an invitation to eligible participants in several compensated research opportunities. The EMBRACE Study at Johns Hopkins University is open to young adults ages 18–24 who experienced the death of a caregiver before age 18. Grief Support for Young People, through Harvard Chan School of Public Health, is open to teens ages 13–18 who have experienced the death of someone important, as well as adults caring for grieving young people. Grief After the Homicide of a Friend, with Lesley University, is open to Black young adults ages 18–25 in the Greater Boston area who have experienced the death of a friend to homicide.
Community Partner Spotlight
🔦 A new feature in our OCHE + Partners newsletters, Community Partner Spotlights will introduce our growing network to organizations making an impact. We encourage you to contact partners directly if you’d like to learn more, get involved, or explore collaboration opportunities.
Our first Spotlight features Mandela Yoga Project, which was created to center people of color as healers of the stressors that result in chronic diseases and other health conditions. MYP envisions a world where those affected by the American public health crisis of racism are empowered to heal their own communities with the proven integrative health benefits and emotional wellbeing of yoga that is offered – without regard to income – where they live, work, worship, and play.
Connect with MYP, based out of Cambridge and serving communities across Massachusetts, by contacting jeffrey@mandelayogaproject.org.
Additional attachments will be listed in the comments
October 23, 2026 at 12:15 pm by MA Bureau of Substance Addiction Services, Office of Community Health & Equity (OCHE)Additional attachments from the above posting
October 23, 2026 at 12:17 pm by MA Bureau of Substance Addiction Services, Office of Community Health & Equity (OCHE)Remaining attachments from the above posting, including the Medetomidine Clinical Advisory
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