by Jill Nolin, Georgia Recorder, [This article first appeared in the Georgia Recorder, republished with permission]

November 14, 2024

This story was updated at 8:15 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. 

A state panel has made its recommendations for how the first round of funding from a major $638 million settlement with opioid manufacturers and distributors should be spent, backing a wide range of projects.

The Georgia Opioid Settlement Advisory Commission approved a total of $44.4 million Thursday for 130 projects as part of the first year of a two-decade-long program. Many of the projects are focused on treatment, prevention, supporting people in recovery, increasing the availability of the overdose-reversing drug naloxone, and boosting research.

The grants are being awarded at a time when opioid overdose deaths are on the decline nationally for the first time since 2018. In Georgia, there was a significant decline in reported opioid overdose deaths from last year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“I think this infusion of services can really make a difference and continue to see that trend move downward. So really excited,” said Cassandra Price, who is a commission member and the director of the office of addictive diseases within the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities.

Demand for the funding was high, with more than 300 applications submitted that would have required $248 million to cover.

The settlement distribution process is a multistep one that started with six regional boards before moving onto the commission. The recommended projects now go to Kevin Tanner, who is the governor-appointed trustee of the state’s opioid crisis abatement trust.

Tanner, who is the commissioner of the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, said he hopes to finalize the grants by the end of the year.

The goal is to kick off the next round of grant applications in the spring, Tanner said. He pointed to a state-led review of the current gaps in service as a guidepost for service providers and organizations hoping to win a slice of the funding.

“Don’t get discouraged,” Tanner said of the many applicants that are not funded this year. “Go back and take a look at what did get funded at the end and reapply. Because this is going to be coming back out on an annual basis, and there’s going to be a lot of opportunities over the next 18 years.” 

A list of the proposed award recipients was read aloud at Thursday’s meeting but has not yet been published or publicly released.

The CDC’s foundation, for example, could see $5.8 million over two years to help expand its overdose response strategy model to rural areas of Georgia. The University of Georgia Research Foundation could also get about $1.2 million for research and evaluation focused on harm reduction services, and CMG Media Group is in line to receive $1.3 million for a multimedia project focused on reducing opioid misuse and addiction, including a 30-minute primetime special.

A total of $638 million will flow into Georgia, with three-fourths of the funds being distributed through the grant process. Another 25%, or $159 million, will be shared among the city of Atlanta and the state’s largest counties and distributed through a separate process. 

The funding is part of a multistate $26 billion settlement agreement with the three largest pharmaceutical distributors, McKesson, Cardinal Health and AmerisourceBergen, and manufacturer Janssen Pharmaceuticals and its parent company Johnson & Johnson.

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