TITLE
Title
CREATE AN OPIOID SETTLEMENT COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT & TASKFORCE COORDINATOR POSITION
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SPONSOR
Sponsor
Victor Isler, Assistant County Manager for Successful People
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BACKGROUND
Background
In June 2021, the State of North Carolina reached a settlement agreement to bring resources to communities to begin mitigating the harm of the opioid epidemic and then the State subsequently established a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with its local governments to distribute and utilize North Carolina’s portion of the settlement funds in an effective manner. Guilford County anticipates receiving up to $22 million over 18 years. The County received $835,075 to date and will receive another $1.8 million in calendar year 2022. $300,000 of this amount was appropriated in the FY 2022-23 adopted budget.
Section E of the Memorandum of Agreement requires local governments to either utilize a prescribed list of strategies "Option A", or engage in a collaborative strategic planning process to utilize a broader array of strategies "Option B".
· Option A - Funds may be spent on one or more strategies from a shorter, more defined list of evidence-based, high-impact opioid abatement strategies (MOA Ex. A)
· Option B - Funds may be spent on a longer more open-ended list of categories, including those allowed in Option A, after a voluntary, collaborative, strategic planning process with a broad array of stakeholders (MOA Ex. B)
Staff recommends “Option B”, the more open-ended of the two options, for the County’s use of these funds. Opioid use disorders are complex and are often associated with other substance use and/or mental health challenges. Many individuals with opioid and other substance use disorders have co-occurring mental disorders and comorbid conditions that providers recognize need concurrent treatment. In 2019, 9.5 million adults had both an SUD and a co-occurring mental illness, and of these individuals 3.6 million had a serious mental illness. Un...
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