What will Phoenix do with tens of millions of opioid settlement cash?

Phoenix's first public health adviser expects to present an Opioid Response Plan to the City Council this fall that will detail how the city should spend the millions it will receive in opioid settlement funds over the next 18 years.

Arizona was awarded $542 million from a national opioid settlement with Johnson & Johnson and three pharmaceutical distributors in 2022 over their roles in national opioid crisis. Last June, the state won another $380 million from drug makers Teva and Allergen, plus the pharmacies CVS and Walgreens. Phoenix's share of all the settlements is about 7%, which is roughly $37 million and $26 million, respectively.

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said at the time the funding could never make up for the "disastrous impact opioids have had on Arizonans," but could play a pivotal role "in helping communities meet the needs of those suffering from this crisis.”

In each settlement, the state, county and city governments in Arizona split funding according to a formula set in the "One Arizona" agreement: 56% to local government and 44% to the state.

Maricopa County entities gets the largest share of all local governments at nearly 60%, followed by Pima County at almost 20%.

Within Maricopa County, the county government itself takes half the funding and Phoenix follows in second with just more than 20%. Mesa is the second highest receiving city at 6%.

The cities and towns have to report every July how they spent that year's allocation. The Arizona Republic recently requested expenditure reports from Attorney General Mayes' office and Phoenix City Hall but has not yet received them.

Nearly a year into the job, Phoenix Public Health Advisor Nicole Dupuis-Witt told The Arizona Republic she spends about half her time on the opioid crisis. The top priority is determining how to most optimally spend the settlement funds.

One way Phoenix is already using some of its opioid settlement money is to provide free opioid-overdose reversal kits at its 17 public libraries. The city launched the much-anticipated program Monday. The Arizona health department is paying for the Naloxone medication, better known as Narcan, while the city is using settlement funds to pay for gloves and pouches that contain the kit.

Whereas other Arizona cities rely on the county and state health departments, Phoenix is the first city to hire its own individual public health adviser. Phoenix will still lean heavily on the Maricopa County health department, but Dupuis-Witt's role is to localize the county health data, helping the city understand different neighborhoods' health needs and working with city departments on curated solutions.

Dupuis-Witt said she wants to ensure "no stone goes unturned" and no unnecessary, duplicative spending occurs with opioid settlement funds since multiple agencies will all receive funds to combat the same problem.

So far, that's meant a lot of meetings with local health agencies and organizations.

"It's important that we're connecting with them, understanding the type of work they do and then where they can be a benefit to the community," Dupuis-Witt said. "Start to come up with some thoughts around partnership."

Dupuis-Witt said her team would evaluate the existing landscape of services, including what programs are available for people in need and what barriers exist for substance users that prevent them from getting help.

The city also launched an online survey Monday about what Phoenix residents think is important and what they're experiencing related to the opioid crisis.

The funding, per the One Arizona agreement, must go toward substance use treatment, recovery and prevention, though the exact details are left to the local governments. The agreement also allows the funding to be used for research, training, first responders, and planning purposes, such as creating a government dashboard.

Reporter Taylor Seely covers Phoenix City Hall for The Arizona Republic / azcentral.com. Reach her by email at [email protected] or by phone at 480-476-6116.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: What will Phoenix do with tens of millions of opioid settlement cash?