Wake County allocates $7.5M in funding to address opioid crisis
The Wake County Board of Commissions on Monday approved $7.5 million to support strategies to address the ongoing opioid overdose crisis.
“This significant investment represents a crucial step forward in our collective efforts to confront the opioid and overdose crisis head-on, ensuring that anyone affected by addiction receives the support and resources they need to heal and thrive,” said Wake County Commissioner Cheryl Stallings. “We have a long way to go to rebuild what opioids took from our community, but I look forward to seeing what these funds can do when we put them to work in the areas needed most.”
According to Wake County, 219 people died from overdoses in the county in 2022, the last full year of recorded data. That's one person every 40 hours.
Data from the Raleigh Police Department shows 103 of those deaths -- nearly half -- occurred in Raleigh, making 2022 the city's most deadly year on record since police began tracking drug overdoses in 2015.
Over the next 18 years, Wake County will receive $65 million as part of a $50 billion nationwide settlement that forces drugmakers and distributors to pay for their part in the opioid epidemic.
In March, families who lost loved ones to opioids helped Wake County plan how to spend the money.
The Wake County Opioid Settlement Funding Plan for Fiscal Year 2025 includes plans to expand treatment access via addiction treatment for those in jail and distribution of Naloxone, an emergency overdose medication.
Funds are also allocated for evidence-based addiction treatment, early intervention programs, a criminal justice diversion program, recovery support services and housing support.
