When will opioid funding be used in Richmond County?

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Funding is on the way to help fight the issue of opioids in the community.

Over the next 18 years, hundreds of millions of dollars will be used to create resources for impacted communities.

But how and when will that money be used in Richmond County?

We follow the paper trail.

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A class action lawsuit against several Pharma companies resulted in a $517 million settlement to Georgia. The Johnson and Johnson lawsuit settled with the state for $118 million.

The two come after a 2021 settlement with McKinsey and Company for $13 million.

Here’s how it breaks down with the last two settlements: 75% of the money goes to the state. The rest is split between 11 regions in Georgia.

The amount we get locally is based on a formula.

The formula calculates the number of people who’ve died from opioids in our area. Also calculated is the number of shipments of drugs used to treat opioid addiction and reverse overdoses.

Part of the requirement for local governments to get the money is to create a board that oversees how the money is spent.

The county also has to show it has an infrastructure or resources to treat opioid addiction.

According to the non-profit, KFF Health News, Augusta Richmond County has received more than $800,000 thousand in settlement money over the last two years.

The city’s revenue report shows they received most of the $800,000 thousand plus in settlement money last year.

According to our local Department of Health, which has a representative on the opioid advisory board, the city has not yet passed the money along to the board.

We asked the administrator’s office about a timeline. We are still waiting to hear back.

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