about accord

Drug addiction and substance abuse have cast a long shadow over Audrain County, challenging our community's health, safety, and well-being.

For years, individual governmental agencies worked tirelessly but independently to address the growing drug crisis, often finding their isolated efforts insufficient against this complex challenge.

Recognizing the need for a unified approach, community leaders and governmental entities came together in 2023 with a revolutionary idea: to combat substance abuse through coordinated, collaborative action. This vision led to the creation of ACCORD (Audrain County Consolidated Overdose Response Division) in early 2024, marking a new chapter in our community's fight against addiction.

The statistics underscore the urgency of our mission. In 2023, Audrain County emergency responders answered more than 80 calls related to substance overdoses, ranging from alcohol to opioids. The tragic loss of one community member to fentanyl that year serves as a stark reminder of the devastating impact of opioids in our region. While this number may seem small to some, we firmly believe that even a single overdose is one too many - each represents a family member, friend, or neighbor in crisis.