"County commissioners approved a plan Tuesday to hire three new fulltime staff members — a social worker to coordinate efforts, a licensed alcohol and drug counselor and a peer-recovery specialist — to expand Olmsted County’s Diversity, Equity and Community Outreach team.

The team, which embeds social workers with Rochester police and Olmsted County deputies, was created to respond to mental health calls, but has seen increased calls related to opioid use and overdoses.

The added staff, which is expected to cost $339,000 per year, help the outreach team address overdose calls and followup, as well as provide a focus on creating access and training related to naloxone, a drug that can prevent opioid overdoses.

The team will also seek to increase community education and prevention efforts connected to opioid use, while building community partnerships."

One additional use was approved by commissioners Tuesday. They allocated $17,000 annually to utilize a web-based platform as a way of providing increased mental health and addiction resources to county residents and businesses.

Known as Credible- Mind, the online resource is expected to create a localized, wellness-oriented platform that employers, insurers, health care providers and community organizations can use to support consumer-centric engagement.

Local nonprofits and other groups will be asked to join the county in providing links to resources on the created website.