NORWICH – The Chenango County Department of Health is taking action against the heroin epidemic and is now getting help in the fight through the form of a state grant.

The department was notified in late 2013 that it would receive $12,000 unexpected dollars from the New York State Department of Health to combat communicable diseases that are easily spread through the wide use of heroin. The grant leverages an additional $5,000 already budgeted by the Chenango Health Department for a similar purpose.

At its December meeting, the County Board of Supervisors passed a resolution authorizing awarded funds, plus the budgeted $5,000, to be used to contract with the Chenango Health Network (CHN), an organization whose objectives are to increase access to health and wellness information and to health care services. Money will pay for CHN’s service of soliciting available grants to combat the heroin epidemic, explained Marcas Flindt, Director of the County Department of Public Health.

“This was a grant that was awarded to us because the (State) Department of Health felt there was an issue in our area. It’s not something we had to apply for,” said Flindt, citing communicable disease as a focus area for the state department in 2014. “I think that shows how our department has done a good job with investigating communicative diseases in a timely manner.”