The State of Michigan has allocated approximately $887 million to local governments as part of a 2021 national settlement with manufacturers and distributors of opioid medications accused of downplaying the risks of prescription painkillers. Cass County has been awarded $2.4 million of those funds, and has created an advisory committee to help decide how to spend their portion.
Cass County organizations and individuals combating impacts of the opioid epidemic are encouraged to apply for local Opioid Settlement Funds. Funding is targeted for programming related to opioid use prevention, harm reduction, treatment, recovery, and wrap around community supports to serve individuals and families impacted by opioid use who also have a connection to Cass County.
The committee developed an application for organizations, groups, and individuals to apply for funding in any of four funding tracks:
- Emergency or crisis response funding to address emergent and time-sensitive issues with a total cost of more than $5,000
- Emergency or crisis response funding to address emergent and time-sensitive issues with a total cost of less than $5,000
- Funding for non-emergency and non-crisis response services or interventions with a total cost of more than $5,000
- Funding for non-emergency and non-crisis response services or interventions with a total cost of less than $5,000
Applications, which can be found online here, will be reviewed and scored on a rubric by the county administrator, finance director, committee chair and vice chair within 14 days. The application and committee’s recommendation will be reviewed by the Board of Commissioners at the next Committee of the Whole meeting, and if approved by the board, will move to a vote at the next regular or special meeting.
“Our community is positively impacted when we use the opioid settlement funds to respond to existing opioid problems by serving the individuals and families impacted by opioid use,” said Chief Judge Carol Bealor, chair of the advisory committee. “There is bigger community impact when we attempt to take our work helping individuals and families to scale by investing in youth prevention (addressing problems before they begin).”
