The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) announced this week that it will use $22 million in settlement monies received from drug distributors to combat the drug epidemic in West Virginia.
House Bill 2428, also known as the Ryan Brown Addiction Prevention and Recovery Fund, was passed by the Legislature during the regular legislative session, and mandates that DHHR ensure beds to provide substance use disorder treatment services in existing or newly constructed facilities. DHHR plans to evaluate where there is the greatest need for drug treatment services in West Virginia and will utilize an application-type process to empower private entities to build these facilities.
“The legislation directing the use of these settlement funds for treatment beds will address a critical gap in the fight against substance abuse,” DHHR Cabinet Secretary Bill J. Crouch said. “These funds will help DHHR continue critical substance abuse initiatives, and will complement existing prevention, treatment and recovery services.”
The Governor’s Advisory Council on Substance Abuse (GACSA) will now become the advisory board for DHHR’s newly formed Office of Drug Control Policy under the leadership of Gov. Jim Justice. The GACSA, established by Executive Order 5-11 on September 6, 2011, has provided guidance to the Governor and recommended priorities addressing substance use in West Virginia.
“The opioid crisis is impacting the very fabric of our communities across the state beyond the affected individuals,” said Dr. Rahul Gupta, State Health Officer and Commissioner for DHHR’s Bureau for Public Health. “This initiative will focus on long term treatment services, which is a much needed component to providing help to those individuals in need of treatment services. They are a welcome addition to the services currently available and will be an integral part of our coordinated and comprehensive approach to combating the epidemic, led by the new Office of Drug Control Policy.”
The drug settlements resolve allegations that the defendant companies failed to detect, report and stop the flood of suspicious prescription drug orders into the state. The settlements also require each distributor to comply with state law in reporting suspicious orders. The defendants denied any allegation of liability, with the parties agreeing to settlements to avoid the delay, expense, inconvenience and uncertainty of protracted litigation.
For more information and instructions for application, please visit http://www.dhhr.wv.gov/bhhf/AFA.