As Alcohol Awareness Month highlights ongoing challenges related to substance use and recovery, the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is intensifying efforts to dismantle stigma and improve access to treatment, particularly in communities of color.
The Minnesota-based nonprofit, the nation’s largest provider of substance use disorder treatment, is expanding its mission to address systemic inequities and cultural barriers that prevent many individuals from seeking help.
“Substance use disorder is not a moral failing — it’s a medical and public health issue,” said Andrew Williams, national director of diversity, equity and inclusion at Hazelden Betty Ford. “We’re working to shift that perception and create a more inclusive, trauma-informed approach to treatment, especially for Black, Indigenous and other communities of color who have historically lacked access to quality care.”
Williams, who has led the organization’s diversity efforts since 2020, said the foundation is investing in workforce development, building partnerships, and expanding culturally responsive care. These efforts aim to address the specific challenges faced by underserved populations, including racial trauma, systemic poverty, and longstanding distrust of the health care system.
Although Hazelden Betty Ford has historically focused on addiction treatment, the organization is now expanding services to address co-occurring mental health disorders. Williams said the move reflects the growing understanding that substance use and mental health issues often intersect.
“You can’t address one without the other — especially in communities carrying the weight of systemic racism, poverty and trauma,” he said.
Minnesota faces significant challenges related to alcohol use. In 2021, the state reported 1,162 alcohol-induced deaths, making alcohol the ninth-leading cause of death that year. That number more than doubled the state’s traffic fatalities and exceeded the total number of deaths by homicide and suicide combined.
Indigenous Minnesotans experienced an alcohol-induced death rate of 120.5 per 100,000 residents — seven times higher than the rate among white residents and 16 times higher than among Asian residents.
From 2015 to 2019, about 5% of Minnesota adults met criteria for alcohol use disorder each year, affecting an estimated 236,000 people annually. Yet 77% of individuals who needed treatment did not receive it, according to federal data.
Williams said stigma, medical racism, and a lack of culturally competent providers contribute to low treatment rates in marginalized communities. “From Tuskegee to today’s disparities in pain management and maternal care, Black communities have legitimate reasons for mistrust,” he said. “When you combine that with stigma around addiction and mental health, it creates enormous barriers to seeking help.”
To address those barriers, Hazelden Betty Ford has begun establishing community-based access points. In North Minneapolis, for example, fire stations have been converted into drop-in locations for initial assessments. The foundation also partners with grassroots groups like Turning Point, which offers addiction services rooted in cultural context.
Despite a nationwide decline in opioid overdose deaths, overdose rates remain disproportionately high among Black and Native American communities. Williams called it a “deadly paradox,” where communities of color are overrepresented among those affected by addiction but underrepresented in access to effective treatment.
He also urged insurers and public agencies to do more to fund treatment programs and improve access to care. “Addiction treatment should be covered the same way we cover other medical care,” Williams said. “Not everyone qualifies for Medicaid, but working-class folks — especially in Black communities — still need coverage and access.”
Williams said that while opioid misuse often dominates headlines, alcohol remains the most commonly abused and deadly substance in the country. Most patients who seek care at Hazelden Betty Ford are dealing with alcohol use disorder rather than opioid addiction, he said.
“Alcohol kills more people over time than opioids,” he said.
Hazelden Betty Ford also operates the Butler Center for Research, which collects data on treatment outcomes and disparities. The foundation runs a graduate school, a professional training program, and a publishing house, all aimed at improving cultural competence in the addiction treatment field.
One of its initiatives allows students without a bachelor’s degree to become certified counselors, creating pathways for more people of color to join the profession.
“Representation matters,” Williams said. “People are more likely to seek care — and have better outcomes — when their providers share cultural grounding.”
He also encouraged individuals to carry naloxone, a medication that can reverse opioid overdoses. “It’s in my bag every day,” he said. “Sometimes that’s what it takes to save a life — and that moment can lead someone to the care they need.”
As part of Alcohol Awareness Month, Hazelden Betty Ford is encouraging communities to engage in open conversations about substance use, advocate for equitable treatment policies, and invest in long-term solutions grounded in empathy and cultural understanding.
For more information, visit www.hazeldenbettyford.org.
Kiara Williams welcomes reader responses at kwilliams@spokesman-recorder.com.