SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY — Jonathan Sanchez died of a drug overdose. His mother, Dorothy Sanchez, through tears held up a photo of her deceased son in front of the legislature. 

“Sullivan County failed me. Sullivan County failed my son,” she said, explaining that her son Jonathan was born in the Bronx, and they lived in three counties across New York State. “But he died in Sullivan County of a drug overdose.” 

Sanchez said, “The community is failing us,” adding “I’m willing to work with people to start thinking of new ways of addressing the addiction.”

Just a couple of weeks prior to Sanchez’s plea for more “to treat people in the grips of addiction,” Catholic Charities of Orange, Sullivan and Ulster counties—a nonprofit organization “feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, supporting families in crisis, caring for children and youth, welcoming and integrating refugees and immigrants, assisting the disabled, and so much more,” according to its website—will lay off almost half its employees, according to a filing with the York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL).

The organization said they will stop admissions and chemical treatment for substance abuse at their Monticello clinic in Sullivan County, in addition to the Goshen, Newburgh, and Port Jervis locations. Other services, such as its food pantry and supportive housing, will remain.

In Sullivan, a little over 40 percent—13 out of a total of 31 employees—will be laid off between May 23 and August 15, according to the NYSDOL filing. The filing cites “economic, other” as the reason for the layoffs. 

In a statement to the River Reporter Catholic Charities CEO Shannon Kelly said, “The difficult decision comes as we face a critical staffing shortage and an evolving healthcare landscape that has made the continuation of care increasingly challenging."

Kelly said the organization is working to transfer individuals currently enrolled in treatment to other local providers for continued care. 

A federal connection  

Many nonprofits receive operational support through federal funding streams, which have been threatened by federal cuts by the Trump administration. See related article here.

At the county legislature’s health and human services meeting on March 14, commissioner of health and human services John Liddle said Catholic Charities receives federal funding for 28 beds through a housing consortium program and that “we have seen funding stop coming through and contracts delayed coming from HUD for the next cycle.” The exact effects locally from federal actions are still unclear. 

Historically, Sullivan County has been an epicenter of the New York State (NYS) opioid crisis and has had some of the highest numbers of overdose fatalities in the state. 

Liddle reported the most recent data available indicates preliminary improvements: the average number of monthly calls received by the 911 center was nearly 50 percent less in 2024 than the average number for the three years prior.

He also said, “Preliminary figures from the NYS Department of Health suggest that the death rate is decreasing, but obviously, anything more than zero is something we are going to be working on,” Liddle said. 

Honing in on the challenge

The county reorganized its substance abuse task force in late 2020, received funding to address opioid issues through its High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) designation in 2023, and has initiated a host of additional programs like the installation of Narcan vending machines across the county over the past couple of years.

However, even with the positive indicators, the most recent annual opioid report released in 2024 with data from 2022 measures the harshest reality of the crisis states, “In NYS, among counties with 40 or more overdose deaths involving any opioid in 2022, the crude rate per 100,000 population for overdose deaths involving any opioid was highest in Sullivan County.”

Sullivan County also had the largest absolute increase of 16.4 per 100,000 between 2021 (46.4 per 100,000) and 2022 (62.8 per 100,000). See the full report at www.health.ny.gov/statistics/opioid/data/pdf/nys_opioid_annual_report_2024.pdf.

The county reported that “outpatient clinic services are lacking in Sullivan County,” in a submission to the New York State Office of Addiction Services as part of a 2024 report before Catholic Charities closed outpatient services in Sullivan.

Though by nature the opioid data lags, the 2024 annual reports underscore the need for continued intervention. With Catholic Charities ending additional services, there is one provider fewer in the county contributing to the effort to end the county’s opioid overdose.

Sanchez says, “The decrease in monthly overdoses and increase in Narcan utilization and access all sounds really good—it sounds like success.” However, she continued, “Success is not just stopping the death toll for today, it’s not just managing the opioid crisis—it’s eliminating it.”

“I just want us [Sullivan County] to get better. I don’t want my son’s life to be in vain,” she said.

Earlier this month, county coroner Albee Bockman reported to the legislature a sharp rise in the prevalence of fentanyl mixed with xylazine, a potent tranquilizer used by veterinarians. Bockman said xylazine was found in one toxicology report of a fatal overdose in the county this year.

Other orgs step up

Liddle said the county’s other addiction providers like Bridge Back to Life mobile treatment, Restorative Management, and Lexington Centers for Recovery have “indicated to us that they have the capacity to accept the remaining patient rolls at Catholic Charities, so we do not foresee an outpatient issue with Catholic Charities closure.”

Director of the Sullivan County Department of Community Services Melissa Stickle also reported on March 14 that the county is moving forward with plans to contract with Oxford House, providers of outpatient residence for people in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction, and hopes to finalize the contract by the end of this month and be able to provide the county with 12 to 24 sober support beds within the year.

Editor's note: A statement from Catholic Charities obtained after the initial publication has been added to the article