Connecticut launches state-funded mobile methadone vans to reach underserved opioid patients

Connecticut has invested more than $4 million from opioid settlement funds to launch two state-funded mobile methadone units, the first such vans in the state's history. Beginning in August, the vehicles will serve high-overdose regions in the northeast and southeast, where residents often face 45-minute drives or multi-hour public-transport trips to reach the three existing clinics. Drivers and staff, including recovery specialist Kevin Laymon, will restock methadone at CHR’s Putnam office before making stops in towns such as Willimantic, Plainfield and Killingly.

Advocates argue the vans will expand access, lower stigma, and provide on-site counseling and case management. The initiative follows a national trend after the DEA lifted restrictions on mobile methadone clinics in 2021, and it coincides with federal legislative proposals that could further alter prescribing rules. Funding is secured through 2027, though long-term financing remains uncertain.