The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
INCOMING FUNDING
Attorney General James to deliver up to $17.5 million to Mohawk Valley to combat opioid crisis
UTICA, N.Y. » On her statewide “Healny” tour, New York State Attorney General Letitia James made stops in the Mohawk Valley and Central New York to announce and highlight incoming funding to help fight the opioid crisis in these areas and throughout the state.
The funds come from different settlements James has negotiated following her March 2019 lawsuit against the various manufacturers and distributors responsible for the opioid crisis. Up to $1.5 billion in funds is anticipated to be distributed across all 62 counties in New York state as part of an initiative to rebuild the state after facing the effects of opioid drug addiction.
According to press releases from James’ office, Oneida County is anticipated to receive $2,442,541.99 — $4,217,567.93. Madison County: $700,424.29 — $1,209,431.41.The range in totals represents the minimum and maximum amounts each county can receive from the settlements. Up to $17.5 million will be delivered to the Mohawk Valley as a whole. Up to $36.8 million will go to CNY.
“The funds we’re infusing into New York today and going forward will be used towards combatting this epidemic with investments in prevention, treatment, and recovery. While no amount of money will ever compensate for the millions of addictions, the hundreds of thousands of deaths, or the countless families torn apart by opioids, this money will be vital in preventing future devastation,” James stated in a press release announcing her tour.
The lawsuit James filed in 2019 was, at the time, what she claims to be the nation’s most extensive lawsuit against the various manufacturers and distributors of opioids. According to James, these manufacturers and distributors were responsible for heavily marketing opioids to doctors, hospitals, health care systems, and others, which led to the overprescription of the drugs across New York and the rest of the nation over the last two decades.
Pursuant to the new law establishing the opioid settlement fund, all funds collected by the state from opioid settlements or litigation victories will be allocated specifically for abatement efforts in communities devastated by the opioid epidemic and will not go towards the state’s general fund, according to James’ office.
Earlier in the week, local officials accompanied James at a Healny press conference at the Center For Family Life and Recovery in Utica. Together, they lauded the efforts of bootson-the-ground staff who’ve been confronting the drug epidemic in Utica and other parts of Oneida County head-on. A few speakers in recovery from addiction, who’re now on the front lines of the effort to help persons with addiction move forward, shared their experiences.
Katie Burns, recovery peer advocate for the Center For Family Life and Recovery, and person in longterm recovery herself, said that “meeting people where they’re at” is an extreme passion of hers, especially as it reflects to her own journey, which started 9 years ago, when she was lacking the support that she can now give. She is part of targeted outreach efforts in Camden, Oneida Square, and Rome, supporting those struggling with addiction, mental health, and homelessness.
“While no amount of money will ever compensate for the millions of addictions, the hundreds of thousands of deaths, or the countless families torn apart by opioids, this money will be vital in preventing future devastation.” — New York State Attorney General Letitia James
“Addicts are humans and we're capable of change,” said Eric Rodriguez, a family peer advocate at the Center for Family Life and Recovery who's overcome addiction and is an ex-convict. For change to happen, these funds are crucial, he said.
This money tells those struggling with addiction that they are seen and that they are worth the time and effort, he said. “These funds that are being allocated..allows us to employ people to go out there and ask questions such as ‘where you at? where do you want to go? and how do I help you get there?'”
Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente stated of the opioid crisis, “This is a problem that knows no boundaries, that knows no economic status, it affects everyone and every way of life.” While the funds will be used on prevention and education, a primary focus at this point is recovery, he said. “Because we do know if we can get to people soon enough, they can recover. They can see the path forward, and continue to be productive and be a part of this community.”
He added that the funds will be used “to do all that we can do to see that those people who are affected with this addiction get the attention, and care, and concern, and treatment that's necessary.”
The funds, which are anticipated to start arriving towards the end of this year, James said, can be used in several ways to bolster the city's existing programs. James noted that raises for the staff of pertinent community organizations may be helpful. “I also hope that we would consider the staff members who certainly need an increase in their salary…i know that you struggle paying your bills each and every single day, and we need to be there for you. These resources obviously can help you raise your wages as well.”
This epidemic needs a several-prong attack, said State Assemblywoman Marianne Buttenshon, “and your attack to go after the root of the problem is commendable,” she said to James. Everyone, from legislators to providers, is here for the same goal, she said. “You can see that this is a team approach when you come to the Mohawk Valley.”
Funding comes from settlements with Johnson & Johnson, Mckesson, Cardinal Health, Amerisource Bergen, and Endo. The more localities across the state that agree to the terms of these different settlements, the more each locality is eligible to receive, according to James' office. The figures listed in this article do not include payments from Purdue Pharma or the Sackler family, as the regional split for those payments are still being finalized. Those funds, as well as any funds from future or ongoing litigation, would be in addition to what is listed here.
Others who spoke at the press conference included NY Senator Joseph Griffo, Utica Mayor Rob Palmieri, Oneida County District Attorney Scott Mcnamara, Oneida County Sherriff Rob Maciol, and the Center for Family Life and Recovery CEO Cassandra Sheets.