Harlem and East Harlem residents make up nearly 8% of the total patients in OASAS’s Opioid Treatment Programs. A #FairShare4Harlem allocation of facilities in our community should, therefore, also be 8%. Instead, OASAS oversaturates Harlem and East Harlem by sending 20% of all New York City’s opioid treatment patients to our community for care.
Structural racism happens when communities of color are asked to take on more than their fair share. Harlem and East Harlem — already disproportionately burdened by decades of systems that impact the health of our neighbors — have been targeted as methadone hubs, serving not only vulnerable people from our community, but all five boroughs, and even New York’s surrounding suburbs.
Why does OASAS not locate treatment in wealthier and whiter neighborhoods? Why is OASAS relying on large methadone megacenters, rather than small-scale, effective, and community-based programs located in all New York Neighborhoods?
In short, why is there not equity in the distribution of these programs?
Take Action: Tweet OASAS That Harlem and East Harlem are Oversaturated