Two Minnesota recovery specialists push for access to addiction care

It wasn’t until Heather Lococo’s daughter was born with cocaine in her system that she knew she had to receive treatment. Losing her kids to foster care was the turning point for her. She spent 29 days in a treatment center and then started going to recovery meetings and spending time with people who didn’t use drugs or alcohol.

That was 2005.

“Everybody that knew me wanted me to get help,” said Lococo. She has had two relapses since then but is now 10 years sober. She has her temporary permit as an alcohol and drug counselor (ADC-T) and works as a program manager at Partners Behavioral Healthcare. She’s also studying social work at Bemidji State University.

“I know the struggle. So I want to see people succeed in life,” she said.

Lococo and Melissa Mikkonen, a program manager at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, share a commitment to equitable access in addiction recovery care.

Both say that many people working in the recovery community are in their own long-term recovery. “I think that that’s really powerful when you can be professional and also share your recovery story ... because then people who are on their journey can see, hey, that’s attainable for me,” said Mikkonen.

Mikkonen says “an epidemic of loneliness” is contributing to addiction in society. “I think that we’re all together all the time, but we’re all still really feeling quite alone.”

Lococo elaborated that putting people of different backgrounds and cultures together with the expectation that they will all learn the same and understand the same is really difficult. Lococo says there need to be more culturally based treatments.

Treatment looks different for everyone. Mikkonen says Blue Cross offers programs both for people who need substance use disorder treatment “within four walls” and for those who don’t need residential treatment but still need structure. They offer virtual intensive outpatient treatment, or IOP, for substance use disorder. According to research on IOPs, 12% suffering from substance use disorder were being treated with IOPs. The demand for these programs is huge, and these programs wouldn’t be possible without funding.

Mikkonen says the federal One Big Beautiful Bill Act threatens access to treatment. According to an article in USA Today, between 12 million and 20 million people are at risk of losing Medicaid coverage. “That’s the thing that keeps me up at night,” said Mikkonen.

For those who don’t have insurance, Mikkonen recommends Portico, which, according to their mission statement, helps uninsured individuals and families access affordable coverage and care. She said Blue Cross works with them a lot. She says counties can also be a resource.

Lococo said most people know someone with drug or alcohol problems. According to American Addiction Centers and the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 50% of Americans know someone who struggles with substance use disorder. Addiction is widespread, but Lococo wants people to know that addiction recovery is possible. “It’s hard, but it’s doable,” she said.

Lococo hopes those struggling with addiction don’t ever give up hope: “I was the black sheep of my family, so it was, ‘Oh, don’t let her over’ …But now, because of what I’ve done with my life, I think it’s really, actually opened up a lot of people’s eyes.”

Lococo’s journey provides an example of what’s possible through recovery. Once homeless, she’s now about to close on a house of her own: “Everything’s changed, everything my relationships with people, my relationships with family, friends, the world is my oyster,” she said.

Additional reporting by JJ Moore (Jefferson High School) and Amelia Mani (DeLaSalle High School).