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The Newsfeed: New overdose treatment center serves most vulnerable

In mid-August, a new Opioid Recovery and Care Access (ORCA) Center opened on the second floor of the Downtown Emergency Service Center in Seattle.

The Newsfeed: New overdose treatment center serves most vulnerable
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There’s a new opioid recovery center in Seattle, operating out of a location that’s been around for decades serving unhoused residents.   

In mid-August, a new Opioid Recovery and Care Access (ORCA) Center opened through the nonprofit Downtown Emergency Service Center on the second floor of the Morrison Hotel in Downtown Seattle.   

Starting in 1979, the DESC served as a homeless shelter for up to 200 people.   

But the organization says the pandemic led to its closure as providers realized they could not safely keep people in crowded indoor spaces.  

Reopening the space as the ORCA Center marks a change in the evolution of homelessness services and the challenges people face. The Center will provide space for overdose recovery, walk-in opioid treatment, counseling and long-term care. It will also provide 24/7 post-overdose stabilization services for up to eight people at a time.    

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Paris Jackson

By Paris Jackson

Paris Jackson is the host of The Newsfeed. She’s an Emmy Award-winning journalist who's spent more than 15 years in commercial television and public media.

Shannen Ortale

By Shannen Ortale

Shannen Ortale is a producer at Cascade PBS. She formerly worked as a freelancer & film festival programmer. She also served as a producer & educator for community media & public television in Boston.