The human toll of the opioid scourge in Delaware County is four deaths a week. Money from opioid lawsuit settlement funds against the manufacturers of the drugs contributes to programs to support treatment and recovery. (Getty Images)
Delaware County Council unanimously approved disbursing $4.1 million for 14 programs in the second round of opioid settlement funding as the human toll of the opioid scourge continues in the county.
“Four people every single week in this county alone die of an overdose of an opioid,” County Councilman Kevin Madden said. “What we learned at this point is there is no magic bullet to cure this epidemic. It requires fighting it on so many fronts.”
In August 2022, Delaware County began receiving allotments from the $63 million it is slated to receive over 18 years. In 2017, Delaware County was the first county in Pennsylvania to file suit against 11 pharmaceutical distributors and their consulting physicians.
A coalition initially formed by attorneys general from Pennsylvania, Texas, North Carolina and Tennessee reached a settlement with these parties.
Pennsylvania’s portion of this is $1 billion and is being distributed to the 67 counties based on naloxone administration and hospitalizations because of overdoses. Litigating counties, such as Delaware County, will receive an extra portion.
Sandra Garrison, Delaware County’s director of Human Services and Community Supports, said the county received $6.4 million from the settlement in 2022.
“It was very clear in the settlement that the funding could only be used for opioid mediation,” she explained.
Both in the first round and in the recent round, funding must be spent within 18 months of receipt.
Delaware County Council Chair Dr. Monica Taylor talked about the impacts this infusion of funds will have.
“(I am) excited to see the statistics and see how these programs are going to impact our community and how they help our residents over the next few years,” she said.
Madden said the rigorous way the county was vetting how to spend these dollars would maximize their effect.
“This is truly going to save lives,” he said. “We can’t always say that on things that we’re going to vote on, but this is absolutely one.”
To determine how to disburse the funds, county officials had a multi-pronged outreach approach.
There were roundtable discussions with health and service providers, grandparents who are raising grandchildren as a result of this epidemic, surviving families, the educational and business communities, criminal justice partners and school social workers.
“We will continue to have these roundtable conversations to determine other usage of these funds,” Garrison explained. “The whole idea … is to get input from the community, from all aspects of the community, because we all know the opioid epidemic really touches everybody.”
In addition, the county did a survey and the county health department held Community Health Assessment Conversations in Morton, Upper Darby, Chester and Concord.
There were also town hall meetings held at Delaware County Community College, at Widener University and in Upper Darby. Garrison said others are being planned.
“I certainly wish that we didn’t have to have this fund,” Councilwoman Christine Reuther said. “It’s available because various corporations and people who should have known better chose to prioritize profits over people … It is not nearly enough to make up for the losses that we’ve had. Hopefully, it will help us minimize losses going forward.”
She also addressed a silver lining in this scenario.
“It has allowed Delaware County to reach out to a lot of providers of services who don’t generally provide services in Delaware County,” Reuther said. “Delaware County’s been kind of a closed shop for decades.”
While thanking all those who work and volunteer in the harm reduction community, Reuther spoke to the wider range of services — such as reaching different populations or providing services in different ways — that have occurred by reaching out to other providers.
The distributions
For this second round, distributions were divided among four goals: Community Recovery Center; Recovery Stabilization; Prevention and Education; Certified Recovery Specialists in Emergency Rooms.
In the Community Recovery Center category, Mental Health Partnerships was awarded $300,000 for a center in Upper Darby that serves the entire county; the American Treatment Network received $550,000 for a peer-led recovery center in Chester; Understanding, Devotion, Take Action, Justice received $100,000 to create a hub for resources and safe spaces for marginalized individuals; and the Shevlin Family Foundation was earmarked for $550,000 to create a facility for programming for families of those struggling with substance use disorder.
In Recovery Stabilization, the University of Pennsylvania was awarded $300,000 for a CareConnect Warm Line Program; Widener University received $200,000 for enhanced workforce training to address barriers to treatment; the Opioid Crisis Action Network gained $500,000 for supporting people with opioid use disorder to attend 12-step meetings and alternative treatment modalities; and the Maternity Care Coalition was awarded $100,000 to increase programming for birthing people and families impacted by Opioid Use Disorder.
On the Prevention and Education front, the International Association for the Alleviation of Poverty was awarded $56,254 for educational activities targeted towards immigrants from Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Rwanda and South Africa; Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia received $200,000 to create a Family Centered Prevention Training Program video and another $118,772 for a program to follow infants with Neonatal Opioid Withdraw Syndrome for the first five years of life; St. Joseph’s University will receive $500,000 to create curriculum for parents/guardians to support students outside of the classroom and develop community understanding of substance abuse prevention; and Savage Sisters also received $68,550 for educational programming for first responders and underserved communities.
In Certified Recovery Specialists, MVP Recovery was allocated $504,747 to embed such specialists in hospitals to assist patients and staff by addressing substance abuse issues.
