Putnam County officials have two new resources to help in the battle against addiction.

Susan Salomone lost her eldest of four children, Justin, from a drug overdose when he was 29 years old in 2012.

She helped found the nonprofit Drug Crisis in our Backyard, which provides recovery resources for families who have loved ones battling addiction.

Salamone was a member of the Putnam County Opiate Settlement Work Group, which advocated where Big Pharma settlement funds should go.

County Executive MaryEllen Odell has helped to fight the war on addiction since she has taken office. 

"I took it on because I knew Big Pharma had to be held accountable for the crisis that they created," she says. 

At the same time, Putnam County is receiving $2.5 million as part of the American Rescue Package to create a crisis stabilization center, a first for the county.

The center would be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week for adults and children to have access to health providers.

"I'm quite confident as we close the door on Dec. 31 that the team that we put in place will carry on that mission as well," says Mike Piazza, commissioner of the DSS. 

The county is currently in negotiations with Putnam Hospital to put the stabilization center on those grounds.