<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=18UnBv_1GvAS8fc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=18UnBv_1GvAS8fc00" width="800" height="546" >Nearly four weeks after Bernalillo County declared a fentanyl emergency, officials are outlining plans for coordinated services and expanded addiction treatment. Yet questions remain about funding and implementation, and one Albuquerque outreach volunteer says she has seen no noticeable changes on the streets.County commissioners unanimously approved the declaration on Oct. 14, granting County Manager Cindy Chavez emergency authority and requesting state assistance. The declaration cited approximately six opioid overdose deaths per week in the county during 2025.Ilse Biel, a volunteer who conducts direct street outreach, said she mainly works in Albuquerque’s International District and near the First Street and I-40 overpass.“I think we might still have to be a little patient to see how the County’s declaration pans out,” Biel told the Daily Lobo over email. “In neither of these areas have I seen tangible changes.”Biel emphasized that her observations cover the places where she volunteers, not every neighborhood in the county.In a statement to the Daily Lobo provided by County Communications Specialist Kristen Ferguson, Chavez described an emergency response still taking shape.“The most important action is that Bernalillo County will use a scalable, County-led Emergency Operations Center,” Chavez wrote.The center is intended to consolidate information about community needs, coordinate county departments and partner organizations, track progress and guide decisions. Treatment access, emergency response, public safety and outreach are among its initial priorities. Chavez did not specify when the center would become operational and funding details remain unsettled. When asked how much money had been authorized or committed specifically under the declaration, Chavez did not supply a figure or identify allocations to individual programs.“Bernalillo County is in the process of determining how these funds will be allocated and will share additional details in the coming months,” she wrote.Some spending will support the emergency operations center, according to Chavez, while other investments will prioritize groups serving people experiencing homelessness, addiction and recovery.County officials have also announced plans to double medical street outreach involving the University of New Mexico’s Street Medicine Program and Albuquerque Health Care for the Homeless.UNM’s Mobile Medical Team provides medical services directly to people living on streets, in shelters and in temporary housing. Its work includes preventive care, chronic disease management and mental health services.Enjoy what you're reading?Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inboxSubscribeChavez did not specify whether the doubling outreach refers to staffing, hours, teams or patient contacts, nor did she provide a baseline, completion date or finalized new agreement with UNM. The county is evaluating partnerships, she said, and expects to share more details in coming months.Biel welcomed the prospect of additional outreach but questioned whether it can succeed while unhoused residents are repeatedly moved from encampments.“Because of the displacements, outreach workers and case managers lose contact with the folks they’ve been working with,” she said.Many people living outside do not have phones, Biel said, making it difficult for service providers to reconnect after a move. Some residents refuse donated tents because they anticipate losing them during subsequent clearances, she said.She said residents lose identification documents, photographs and keepsakes during removals, which creates obstacles to accessing services, and that she believes repeated disruption makes building trust with case managers difficult even when outreach programs have resources.Biel said she favors Housing First, which is an approach guided by the belief that access to permanent housing and basic necessities should come first before people can attend to less critical things like jobs, budgeting or substance use issues. This approach allows people experiencing homelessness to improve their quality of life and thus pursue personal goals, according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness. In the short-term, Biel proposed what she calls “Stability First,” allowing people to remain in predictable locations long enough to maintain relationships and begin recovery.“If the county does not address the constant barrage of displacements throughout the city, I don’t see how their street outreach will be fully productive,” Biel said.She alleged that police displacement operations near the Harm Reduction Collaborative’s offices have coincided with lower attendance at its services. The Daily Lobo has not independently confirmed that reported connection.Albuquerque’s published encampment policy describes shelter offers, outreach and storage for personal belongings while also permitting clearance of encampments from public property under specified conditions. The city administers those operations; Bernalillo County issued the fentanyl declaration.Biel also identified barriers within treatment services. She said the county’s Comprehensive Assessment and Recovery through Excellence (CARE) Campus Campus has improved, but accessing help at the moment someone is ready can remain difficult. Recovery facilities frequently restrict pets, and programs do not always coordinate transitions effectively, she said.Biel said the Homeless Union is searching for foster arrangements for pets while their owners enter treatment. She said restrictions on animals can prevent people from taking a recovery placement when they are ready.She mentioned a woman who completed detoxification and then a longer treatment program, and said that after 90 days, the woman still lacked housing and returned to the street where she had previously lived.“It wasn’t long before I could see she had started using again,” Biel said.For Biel, that experience underscores the importance of stable housing and continued support after treatment. At the Metropolitan Detention Center, Chavez wrote 125 to 200 people are detoxing on any given day. The county is seeking a new vendor for medication-assisted treatment, including possible long-acting injectable medications for people with opioid use disorder.The vendor must coordinate with community providers to help people continue treatment after release. Chavez wrote the new services are scheduled to begin July 1, 2027. No implementation date has been set for long-acting injections.Chavez wrote that the county forwarded its emergency declaration to state officials and continues discussing treatment needs. She did not specify new state resources committed in response.The county intends to measure service gaps, treatment availability and the number of people accessing care, Chavez wrote. “Every number, every data point is a person, a family member, a loved one who is suffering,” Chavez said.Biel said she wants to see people living safely, maintaining contact with outreach workers and receiving sustained support.“People have lost trust in authorities,” Biel said. “(Those authorities need to) meet them where they are and keep on coming back to work with them.”George Slad is a freelance photographer for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at photo@dailylobo.com or on X @SladGeorge</div></body>

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Nearly four weeks after Bernalillo County declared a fentanyl emergency, officials are outlining plans for coordinated services and expanded addiction treatment. Yet questions remain about funding and implementation, and one Albuquerque outreach volunteer says she has seen no noticeable changes on the streets. County commissioners unanimously approved the declaration on...

Albuquerque’s fentanyl emergency: Where things stand

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Nearly four weeks after Bernalillo County declared a fentanyl emergency, officials are outlining plans for coordinated services and expanded addiction trea

Albuquerque’s fentanyl emergency: Where things stand

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