Thursday, April 18, 2024
4/18/2024
Anaconda Community Intervention, Inc. (ACI) serves Deer Lodge County, a 741 square mile area with a population of 9,106 (US Census, 2018). Our project speaks highly to the second goal of the Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking: "To engage parents, schools, communities, all levels of government, all social systems that interface with youth and youth themselves, in a coordinated effort to prevent and reduce drinking and its consequences." As Stop ACT funds are limited to 4-years, infrastructure development is essential if progress realized during that timeframe is to continue after the grant has ended. ACI's STOP Act project will focus on strengthening collaboration between our coalition, other Montana-based prevention organizations and Montana government agencies (that include a focus on the prevention of youth alcohol use); improving method of dissemination and sharing surveillance data related to underage drinking and population-based risk factors to the public; limiting youth access to alcohol; and decreasing community norms favorable to underage drinking. To measure the impact of our effort, we have established the following outcome objectives in correlation with the four performance measures required. By June 29, 2023 (using 2018 MPNA Survey results as the baseline): to decrease 8th, 10th and 12th grade past 30-day use of alcohol by 20%; to increase Parental Disapproval to 90% or higher; to decrease the incidence of binge drinking (5 or more per occasion) by 20%; and to decrease favorable attitudes towards peer use of alcohol by 20%. We believe the more we can "amplify" our efforts, the greater the potential to realize the measurable objectives identified. This rural county is classified as economically disadvantaged with 32.1% of our population under the age of 18 living in poverty. Our STOP Act activities will target the 1,087 youth, between the ages f 12 and 20 over the next four years, for a total of 4,384 youths. The largest Deer Lodge County racial/ethnic groups are White (90.5%) followed by Two or More (4%) and Hispanic (3.3%). Mental Health (Medicaid) has increased by 36% in the past 5 years, and the percent of the Medicaid population receiving mental health services in Deer Lodge County is 51% than the state average.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).
