Opioid Settlement

Background Information

Opioid Crisis in North Carolina

Over the years, opioid-related issues like deaths, hospitalizations and ER visits have been on the rise becoming a growing health concern in North Carolina. In June 2017, North Carolina responded with a Opioid Action Plan 2.0, which was updated in May 2021. North Carolina’s Opioid and Substance Use Action Plan 3.0 lays out concrete strategies focused on prevention, harm reduction and care access.

Opioid Settlement

Attorney General Josh Stein secured $56 billion in national settlements with opioid companies, including $1.5 billion for North Carolina.

Two settlements were reached, one in July 2021 and another in Nov.-Dec. 2022, addressing the industry's role in the epidemic.

The first settlement, released in July 2021, was with the three largest drug distributors (McKesson, Cardinal Health, and AmerisourceBergen) and manufacturer Johnson & Johnson for $26 billion.
The second settlement, released in November and December 2022, was with CVS, Walgreens, Walmart, Allergan, and Teva for $21 billion.

These funds aim to aid affected communities and require significant changes in the industry that will help prevent this type of crisis from reoccurring.

Allocation to Counties

The settlement funds were allocated to 100 counties and 17 municipalities in North Carolina over an 18-year period, starting in 2022.

The state developed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with each county or municipality which directs how opioid funds are distributed and used. Before spending settlement funds, every local county or municipality selected which opioid mitigation strategies they want to fund.

Union County's Share

Union County will receive a total of $17,141,415 from both settlement sources. They are using NC Exhibit B, incorporating an adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) framework and a trauma-informed approach to address the crisis.

Union County will receive a total of $9,445,807 between the years of 2022 and 2038 from the first settlement.

For more details, visit the North Carolina Opioid Settlement page.

Vision

To promote a healthier quality of life for the Union County community by preventing harm and death caused by opioid misuse.

Mission

To efficiently and effectively utilize the NC Opioid Settlement funds to prevent opioid use, reduce harm due to opioid and related substance abuse, and connect affected individuals to the care and support needed.

Goals

Goal 1

Preventing opioid use.

Goal 2

Reducing harm due to opioid and related substance abuse.

Goal 3

Connecting affected individuals to the care and support needed.

Expand/Increase Existing Efforts

Increase naloxone and syringe service access.
Expand Treatment and Recovery Resources.
Increase economic support for individuals via expanded transportation options and low/no cost treatment options.
Expand Peer Support and Substance Use Care Coordination resources.

Funding Information

Union County will receive a total of $17,081,191 between the years of 2022 and 2038.

The image is a horizontal bar chart titled "Funding per Fiscal Year," displaying funding amounts for fiscal years from FY 2023 to FY 2039. Each bar represents the funding amount for a specific year, with the exact value labeled at the end of each bar. The funding for FY 2024 is significantly higher than other years at $2,592,940. The funding for other years ranges from $417,680 to $1,371,035. The chart indicates that funding decreases significantly from FY 2037 to FY 2039, with the lowest amounts in these years.

Approved Funding Information

Breakdown of what group will receive funding and their plans to use that funding.

The total amount of funding allocated to these groups or services through June 2026 is $2,724,783.

Bridge to Recovery

Cameron’s House of Hope

Family Treatment Courts

Ground 40

New Beginnings

Union County Sheriff’s Office, Union County Consolidated Human Services Agency, Union County Public Schools

Safety First is a theory-based and evidence-informed curriculum that encourages all youth to abstain from using drugs but also includes a clear harm-reduction message for youth who are experimenting or using to provide high school students with scientifically accurate information to empower them to quit and reduce harm, should they choose to continue to use.

A pilot program will be implemented in the Porter Ridge and Sun Valley clusters (middle and high schools).

Additional funding was approved for the Union County Sheriff’s Office, Union County Consolidated Human Services Agency, Union County Public Schools for this project.

Union County Human Services Naloxone Distribution

Wingate University

As an academic partner, Wingate University is collaborating with Union County Human Services to finalize the documentation of program structures and activities to build an evaluation and data collection.

Wingate University is developing a map of key evaluation indicators with metrics and associated data sources. Wingate University recently secured the Research Data Capture (REDCap) System, a secure data collection system, that will be used to gather evaluation metrics. As an academic institute, Wingate will assist with monitoring and evaluating UC Opioid Settlement Strategies, support a data dashboard, and disseminate reports.

Milestones & Timeline

July 21, 2021

Settlement agreement reached.

Aug. 16, 2021

Union County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) adopted a resolution approving a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the State of North Carolina and Local Governments for the Settlement of the Opioid Litigation.

SUD Task Force: Launched May 22, 2024

Goals:

Provide a forum that promotes:

Collaboration – avoid silos
Ensure that the work on SUD is comprehensive
Come together to increase capacity to address SUD
Ensure we are addressing SUD using a 2-generational approach (ACEs and trauma-informed framework)

Watch Past Meetings

Pick Up a Free Narcan Kit
Contact our Nurse Triage at 704-296-4864 for more information. Pick up a free Narcan Kit at Union County Human Services, 2330 Concord Ave. Monroe, NC 28110.

Union County, NC

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Opioid Settlement

Opioid Crisis in North Carolina

Opioid Settlement

Allocation to Counties

Union County's Share

Goals

Core Strategies

Expand/Increase Existing Efforts

Create New Strategy

Develop Collaborative Support Structure

Funding Information

Approved Funding Information

Milestones & Timeline

SUD Task Force: Launched May 22, 2024

Goals:

March 4, 2024

Oct. 02, 2023

June 19, 2023

Feb. 06, 2023