Good afternoon!

We’re excited to share an udated resource from OpioidSettlementTracker.com and Vital Strategies: Guides for Community Advocates on the Opioid Settlements. These updated guides for all 50 states and the District of Columbia are now available at opioidsettlementguides.com. They include incremental updates to state and local opioid settlement plans made over the past year and feature input from state Attorneys General, a new addition to the process.

The AOR team finds these guides invaluable and relies on them regularly in our work.

Each guide answers key questions for every state and intrastate allocation (~120 nationally):

• Where exactly do my state’s opioid settlement winnings live?
• Who ultimately decides how my state’s opioid settlement funds are spent: advisory council members, state legislatures, health departments, or local government officials?
• What must my state’s opioid settlements be spent on, and what processes must be followed as they are spent?
• Has my state established an opioid settlement advisory body? And is that body required to include member(s) with lived and/or living experience?
• Can I provide input on spending? Are my state’s decisionmakers required to hear the public’s input on opioid settlement spend?
• Are any of my state’s opioid settlements at risk of being used to supplant existing health resources?
• Where should I go for updates, and what are key opioid settlement spending resources I should know about in my state?

The Guides for Community Advocates on the Opioid Settlements are a great tool for anyone working to ensure opioid settlement funds are spent effectively and equitably. Visit opioidsettlementguides.com to explore your state’s guide and get involved in shaping the future of opioid settlement spending.

Ohio

The OneOhio Recovery Foundation awarded more than $3.5 million in grants to 16 projects across the state.

• Region 1 – Alvis, Inc. – Building Hope – Recovery Supports – $200,000
• Region 1 – CompDrug – Expanding Knowledge and Resources for Xylazine Use in Franklin County – Harm Reduction – $27,885
• Region 1 – OhioHealth Foundation – The OhioHealth Maternal Addiction Promises Program: Care for Pregnant and Postpartum Persons with Substance Use Disorder – Treatment and Healthcare Services – $720,506
• Region 3 – American Heart Association – Cuyahoga County CPR and Opioid Lifesavers Program – Harm Reduction – $125,000
• Region 6 – Alliance City Health Department – SWAP (Stark Wide Approach to Prevention) Needle Syringe Program – Harm Reduction – $69,867.91
• Region 7 – ACMC Healthcare System – Glenbeigh – Workforce Development Expansion and Recovery Support – Workforce – $32,400
• Region 7 – New Day Recovery – Vouch for a New Day – Innovation – Change to Recovery Supports – $24,000
• Region 7 – Thrive Behavioral Health Center, Inc. – Peer Empowerment: Building Stronger Communities Through Recovery Support – Recovery Supports – $271,857.20
• Region 10 – Project Noelle – Youth Prevention and Living Essentials – Prevention – $9,600
• Region 13 – ACMC Healthcare System – Glenbeigh – Workforce Development Expansion – Earn/Learn/Live Program – Workforce – $74,000
• Region 14 – Clermont Co. Mental Health and Recovery Board – The Clermont County Crisis Receiving Center – Intervention and Crisis Support – $1,000,000
• Region 14 – McKinley Hall – Alive and Well & New Hope Recovery Houses – Recovery Supports – $95,880
• Region 14 – McKinley Hall – Expanded Rapid Access to Addiction Medicine Clinic (E-RAAM) – Intervention and Crisis Support – $326,579.57
• Region 18 – North Central Ohio ESC – Prime for Life: Prevention and Early Intervention Education for Substance Use – Prevention – $43,780.33
• Region 18 – Project Noelle – Youth Prevention and Living Essentials – Prevention – $25,400
• Region 19 – Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Ohio – Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Ohio Prevention Programming – Prevention – $500,00

Pennsylvania

Lawrence County Commissioners awarded Vision Ministries $78,751 to provide substance use seminars to all local school districts.

South Carolina

The City of Columbia allocated $133,760 to the Courage Center to expand recovery services beyond their center and $285,264 to A Second Chance Resource Center to conduct outreach programs for incarcerated individuals. 

Virginia

The Virginia Opioid Abatement Authority awarded $902,376 to three Virginia communities: 

• The City of Lynchburg was awarded $193,421 to fund a partnership with “Roads to Recovery” to provide intensive opioid and substance use disorder treatment and recovery services for an estimated 400 adults per year. The program will provise peer and social supports for the delivery of withdrawal management services, including wraparound support for transitioning to treatment and other recovery support services. Services will be available to residents of Lynchburg and the counties of Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford, and Campbell. 

• The City of Virginia Beach was awarded a total of $636,105 for six projects focusing on youth-related substance use prevention and recovery. These efforts will include hiring a certified youth peer support specialist, establishing an opioid prevention and treatment program at the city’s juvenile detention center, implementing the Law Enforcement Against Drugs program in schools and after-school settings, providing an online substance use education and prevention program in schools, launching a teen-focused social media campaign, and developing an education and prevention program that will be integrated into the city’s youth-oriented parks and recreation programs. 

• Warren County was awarded $72,850 to expand youth services at the Raymond E. Santmyers Student Union and Activity Center for substance use prevention to all youth in Warren County between the ages of 13 to 18 in grades 8-12. 

West Virginia

News reports that Mercer County commissioners are planning to allocate funds to the Mercer County Day Report Center, a community-based alternative sentencing program for non-violent offenders, for building repairs and renovations. 

The West Virginia First Foundation (WVFF) approved a $20 million commitment to Marshall University for the Appalachian Continuum of Care for Overdose Reduction Network (ACCORN) project. This outcomes-based initiative, part of the ARPA-H HEROES program, aims to reduce neonatal withdrawal syndrome, recidivism, and substance use rates through interventions in 10 counties. ACCORN’s strategies include expanding wrap-around services like MAT, counseling, and housing, alongside bi-monthly drug screening for participants. This decision bypassed WVFF’s standard grant proposal process and still requires federal approval. 

Pennsylvania — DDAP application info. for “Community-Based Prevention Services to Prevent Opioid Use” (DUE 12/13)

Tennessee — OAC application info. for “Opioid Abatement Council Community Grants Cycle 2” (DUE 12/13)

Pennsylvania — DDAP application info. for “Harm Reduction Services” (DUE 12/20)

Montgomery County, Pennsylvania — application info. (DUE 12/31)

Seneca County, New York – application info. (DUE 1/6/2025)

Kentucky — KYOAAC application portal for “Prevention” and “Treatment and Recovery Support” (DUE 1/17/25)

Alabama

Oversight Commission on Settlement Funds

• TBD
• In-person in Montgomery, AL
• Can watch live on their website (choose ‘Room 200’ for location then ‘Oversight Commission on Alabama Opioid Settlement Funds’ for meeting)

You can also watch livestreams and recordings on The Alabama Channel (thanks to the League of Women Voters of Alabama Education Fund)

Georgia

Georgia Opioid Settlement Advisory Commission 

• TBD (late February or early March 2025)

Kentucky

Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission (meeting info here)

• Business Meeting: March, 11 2025, 1pm EST
• In-person located in Frankfort, KY and attendees can give public comment
• Can watch live and recordings on their YouTube channel
• Prevention/Reform/Compliance Subcommittee Meeting: TBD
• In-person located in Frankfort, KY
• Treatment & Recovery Subcommittee meeting: TBD
• In-person located in Frankfort, KY

Maryland

Opioid Restitution Fund Advisory Council (meeting info here)

• TBD
• Meetings are all-virtual. Can watch live via Google Meet & there is usually an opportunity for public comment

New York

Opioid Settlement Fund Advisory Board (meeting info here)

• TBD
• In-person located in Albany, and attendees can give public comment
• Can watch live and recordings on their website

Monthly ‘Community’ meeting: 4th Wednesday of the month at 12pm

• See this page under ‘Community Input’

Ohio

OneOhio Recovery Foundation Board (meeting info here)

• Full Board Meeting: February 12 2025, 10:30am EST
• In-person meetings are located in Columbus and are open to the public, but there is usually no opportunity for public comment
• Can watch live and recordings on their website
• Audit & Finance Committee: TBD
• Executive Committee: TBD
• Grant Oversight Committee: TBD
• Personnel Committee: TBD
• Investment Committee: TBD

Regional Information Sessions (see events calendar for most up-to-date info)

• TBD

Pennsylvania

Opioid Misuse and Addiction Abatement Trust (meeting info here)

• Board of Trustees Meeting: TBD
• In-person located in Harrisburg
• All are virtual and can be watched live via Zoom and recordings on YouTube 

South Carolina

Opioid Recovery Fund

• SCORF Board Meeting: March 5, 2025 10:00am EST(info here)
• Coffee Chat: January 3, 2025, 9:30am EST virtual
• This is held the first Friday of the month and is an opportunity to ask questions and hear announcements about opioid settlement funds

Tennessee

Opioid Abatement Council

• Meeting: TBD (info here)
• In-person located in Franklin, TN. (Location rotates around the state.) Meetings are also available to watch via Teams – All attendees can give public comment
• Recordings and meeting minutes are available on their website

Virginia

Opioid Abatement Authority (meeting info here)

• Grants Committee: TBD
• Finance Committee: TBD
• Board Meeting: TBD

West Virginia

West Virginia First Foundation, Inc. (meeting info here)

• Board of Directors meeting: December 12, 12:45pm EST
• Meetings are held the first Thursday of the month