Local counties start receiving opioid settlement funds
Fayette, Greene, and Washington counties are set to receive a combined $27.5 million in opioid settlement money over the next 18 years.
Those dollars come from a historic $1.07 billion lawsuit against pharmaceutical providers Cardinal Health, McKesson, and AmerisourceBergen, along with Johnson & Johnson, for their role in the country’s opioid crisis.
Pennsylvania also is expected to receive an estimated $452 million in lawsuit money from CVS, Walgreens, and others.
Now, the counties are determining how to best use those funds to confront the ongoing epidemic.
Washington County Commission Chairwoman Diana Irey Vaughan is pleased with the significant amount of money earmarked for addressing the crisis.
“There’s a great deal of work that needs to be done in Washington County and the region to combat this horrific disease, and every dollar will be spent toward reducing the impact of the opioid epidemic,” said Irey Vaughan.
Washington County will be allocated about $11.5 million from the $1.07 billion settlement. Greene County is set to receive $1.7 million, while more than $11.6 million will go to Fayette County.
There are specific guidelines on how the counties and local communities will be allowed to spend the settlement dollars, such as for new or continuing programming for drug treatment.
Washington County plans to use its first round of money to update electronic medical records, add security cameras, and purchase and install a full body scanner at Gateway Rehabilitation’s Greenbriar Treatment Center in Washington, at a cost of about $666,700.
So far, Greene County has received a little over $175,400 in settlement money. The county purchased a full body scanner that is being installed at the Greene County jail and will be operating sometime in August.
“The intent is to prevent contraband – drugs – from getting into the jail when suspects are booked and incarcerated,” said Greene County Commission Chairman Mike Belding.
Belding said the county has discussed using future opioid funds for half-way housing and reentry training support.
Fayette County has received more than $2.1 million to date. Commissioner Vincent Vicites said the county has turned to social agencies and stakeholders such as the City Mission, Fayette County Drug and Alcohol Commission, and Fayette EMS to solicit ideas on how to use the money.
“There’s been a lot of collaboration, and we’ve been meeting with agencies who would like a portion of the funding we have available,” said Vicites.
So far, a number of programs have received funding.
Fayette EMS was awarded $286,794 for Community Addiction Support Team (CAST), a program that connects those battling addiction with the treatment, resources and services they need.
“So if 911 gets a call for an emergency, and say a first responder helps someone by using NARCAN, they’re taken to Penn Highlands or WVU Uniontown, and then they connect the person with the people, organization, or program they need to get treatment and help,” said Vicites.
Also, $143,458 was awarded (the first of an annual allotment) to Fayette County Prison to provide drug treatment for inmates.
City Mission received $100,000 and Pennsylvania State Constable-Fayette County received $13,000 to provide transportation for homeless men and women to the shelter, which provides treatment for drug addiction.
Other funding went to Good Works, a job skills training program that will help those in recovery prepare for employment ($41,600) and Drug Court of Fayette County ($35,000 annually).
In Pennsylvania, a 13-member oversight board is responsible for ensuring counties and local governments spend money appropriately.
All 67 counties in the state opted to join the agreement negotiated by then-state Attorney General Josh Shapiro and other state attorneys general with pharmaceutical providers Cardinal Health, McKesson and AmerisourceBergen, along with drug manufacturer Johnson & Johnson.
The settlement represented a resolution of thousands of lawsuits filed against the drug companies who were accused of letting addictive drugs enter illegal channels and downplaying addiction risks in their marketing. The companies have not admitted any wrongdoing.
“Fayette County was one of the first to file suit back in 2018. We knew this was wrong, we saw what was happening,” said Vicites. “There are a lot of people who have died, and so many families have been touched by the opioid crisis. We want to be part of the solution.”
In 2022, 109,680 people in the U.S. died from a drug overdose, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
That figure was slightly higher than in 2021, when 109,179 people died. Overdose deaths skyrocketed in 2020 and 2021, increasing by about 17% in 2021 and 30% in 2020.
In 2021, 5,168 Pennsylvania residents died from overdoses. An average of 14 Pennsylvanians die every day from overdose, according to the attorney general’s office.
Pennsylvania’s Opioid Data Dashboard estimates there are nearly 11,100 people with a drug use disorder in Washington, Greene, and Fayette counties.