Community Medical Services opened its Capitol Drive clinic to bring low-barrier, evidence-based opioid use disorder treatment closer to the people and neighborhoods that need it most. Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson and Milwaukee Fire Department Chief Lipski agree: CMS is building a coordinated city-level response to the opioid crisis.
The CMS Milwaukee on Capitol clinic is located at 7600 W. Capitol Drive and offers same-day treatment, walk-ins, medications for opioid use disorder, counseling, and peer support.
The opioid crisis is complex, urgent, and deeply local. It affects individuals and families, but it also touches emergency response, public safety, housing stability, courts, re-entry systems, hospitals, and neighborhoods.
As Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson shared in his message of support: “We know that no single organization can solve this crisis alone. Public health, public safety, health care providers and community organizations… everybody’s got to work together, to make sure that we have progress on this.”
That belief is at the center of CMS’s work in Milwaukee. Since opening its first Wisconsin clinic in West Allis in 2019, CMS has worked alongside city, county, municipal, and community partners to expand access to evidence-based care and address the broader consequences of opioid use disorder.
With the opening of the Capitol Drive clinic, CMS is expanding access to treatment in Milwaukee’s north side communities. The clinic provides a nearby access point for people seeking help with opioid use disorder, including treatment for heroin and fentanyl use, through a combination of medication-assisted treatment, counseling, and peer support.
CMS designed the Capitol Drive clinic to meet people where they are: with walk-ins welcome, same-day treatment options, and a judgment-free model of care.
Cities face real and urgent challenges related to opioid use disorder. Emergency response teams carry the burden of repeat overdose calls. Public health leaders need scalable interventions. Courts and probation systems need trusted treatment pathways. Families need hope. Individuals need care without judgment.
It is part of a broader city-level response; one built on partnership, evidence-based treatment, and the shared belief that progress is possible when communities work together.
CMS’s work in Milwaukee is built around collaboration with public health, public safety, and community systems. CMS fosters ongoing partnerships with:
Together, these partnerships help create more points of connection to treatment, whether someone encounters the system through emergency response, public safety, health care, re-entry, court coordination, or a community referral.
CMS brings more than treatment capacity. It brings a partnership model designed to help cities respond to the full impact of opioid use disorder.
Medication for opioid use disorder is an evidence-based approach associated with reduced risk of overdose and overall mortality. FDA-approved medications for opioid use disorder include buprenorphine, methadone, and naltrexone.
CMS provides medications for opioid use disorder alongside counseling, peer support, and individualized treatment planning at all Wisconsin clinics, including at its Capitol Drive location.
Peer support is a core part of the CMS care model. CMS’s Capitol Drive clinic offers counseling and peer support services, and our certified peer support specialists are essential to bridging gaps in care, building trust, and inspiring hope. We strive to have at least one peer at all clinics, when possible.
Chief Lipski also highlighted CMS’s role in providing peer support specialists for the Milwaukee Overdose Response Initiative team, noting that their lived experience helps engage individuals who may otherwise be hesitant to seek help.
For fire, EMS, and other public safety teams, opioid-related emergencies can become a repeating cycle when people are revived but not connected to ongoing care. CMS helps create a pathway from emergency response to treatment and recovery resources.
CMS’s Milwaukee partnerships extend across emergency services, public health, public safety, courts, probation, re-entry, family and treatment court coordination, naloxone distribution, and services for unhoused individuals. This ensures everyone has access to treatment and support.
CMS opened its first Wisconsin clinic in West Allis in April 2019. Today, CMS operates six Wisconsin clinics, including Milwaukee on Capitol, Milwaukee on Chase, Madison, West Allis, South Milwaukee, and Fond du Lac.
Opioid use disorder is a medical condition. It deserves medical care, compassionate engagement, and coordinated community support.
When cities, first responders, public health leaders, and treatment providers work together, more people can be connected to care at the moments when help is most needed. CDC guidance recognizes medications for opioid use disorder as an evidence-based treatment approach and notes that MOUD has been associated with reduced risk of overdose and overall mortality.
CMS’s role in Milwaukee is to help make that care accessible, coordinated, and grounded in dignity.
