Polk County is supporting the “Fork in the Road Initiative,” developed during the Reaching Rural planning phase. The Fork in the Road Initiative is intended to create long-lasting and systemic change by providing a pathway for SUD screening, assessment, treatment opportunities, and release coordination in the early stages of involvement with the criminal justice (CJ) system. This includes hiring an employee to ensure completion of SUD assessments, coordinate treatment placement in the community, and collaborate with the court and prosecuting authority in cases to expedite program participants’ access to treatment services and release from custody. The county is also expanding hours for a psychiatric nurse practitioner to assist with completion of SUD assessments and explore options for MAT initiation and to develop a formalized intervention strategy that can be delivered within the jail in the form of a Self-Management and Recovery Training (SMART) recovery curriculum.