Overview
Washtenaw County invites organizations, community groups, and coalitions addressing opioid use prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery to apply for funding to support development, implementation, enhancement, sustainability, or expansion of programs. This includes programs addressing opioid use, opioid use disorder (OUD), polysubstance use and co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders (SUD), and programs promoting the safety and wellness of people who use drugs (PWUD).
Background
The state of Michigan is slated to receive approximately $1.6 billion over 18 years from the Opioid Settlement Funds detailed below. Approximately fifty percent (50%) of the settlement amount will be sent directly to county and local governments. The national agreement also requires significant industry changes that will help prevent this type of crisis from ever happening again.
In 2021, a $26 billion nationwide settlement was reached to resolve all Opioids litigation brought by states and local political subdivisions against the three largest pharmaceutical distributors: McKesson, Cardinal Health, and AmerisourceBergen (“Distributors”), and manufacturer Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and its parent company Johnson & Johnson (collectively, “J&J”).
In 2022, additional settlements with pharmacies and manufacturers were announced, including CVS, Walmart, Allergan and Teva. These four settlements are expected to bring in around $450 million to Michigan. Additional settlements with Walgreens and Kroger have also taken place which are anticipated to result in $138 million and $41 million to Michigan respectively. Additional funds have come into Michigan from Meijer, Mallinckrodt PLC, Masters Pharmaceuticals, McKinsey and Co., and Publicis Health.
Michigan can also expect additional funds received through companies Purdue Pharma and Endo, which are pursuing bankruptcy plans that include funding opioid abatement trusts.
Currently, Washtenaw County has received two (2) payments from the Distributors settlement and five (5) payments from the J&J settlement. Annual funding amounts will fluctuate, with an average of approximately $750,000 dollars available annually for opioid remediation activities in Washtenaw County.
In February 2024, the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners passed Resolution 24-036 establishing the Opioid Settlement Steering Committee (OSSC) to oversee the initial planning framework for distribution of opioid settlement funds. This framework included conducting a community needs assessment, identifying funding priorities and mechanisms, defining monitoring and accountability metrics, and developing a transition plan for ongoing oversight.
The OSSC partnered with Michigan State University (MSU) to conduct a community needs assessment aimed at identifying gaps in services for those affected by opioid use disorder (OUD). This assessment included focus groups and interviews with community providers and individuals with lived experience. After reviewing the 2024 Opioid Community Assessment Report along with SUD surveillance reports and surveys from community partners, the OSSC identified priority areas for the allocation of settlement funds. Recommendations for the use of opioid settlement funds were based on identified gaps in SUD services within Washtenaw County and data highlighting the need to increase and/or expand services or sustain existing services that may otherwise have insufficient resources.
