In July 2021, the State of North Carolina reached a historic $26 billion settlement agreement to help bring resources to communities to assist efforts to mitigate the harm caused by the opioid epidemic. The agreement resolves litigation over the role of four companies in creating and fueling the opioid epidemic. The agreement also requires significant industry changes that will help prevent this type of crisis from ever happening again. Guilford County's former lead Attorney, Mark Payne, also played a critical role in the County Opioid Settlement Working Group, which ultimately helped lead to the settlement agreement.

How the Settlement Funds are Disbursed

Planning for and use of funds is directed by the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the State and Local Governments. The MOA outlines how local governments shall expend Opioid Settlement Funds for opioid-related expenditures only. To maximize funds flowing to North Carolina communities on the front lines of the opioid epidemic, the MOA allocates 85 percent of settlement funds to NC’s 100 counties and 17 municipalities, with the State retaining 15 percent of funds. 

How Much Will Guilford County Receive?

Guilford County is allocated 3.375% of the total settlement, amounting to $21,735,653 over an 18-year payout. A special revenue fund was created for these funds for monitoring, reporting, and auditing purposes.

The County received $835,075 to date and will receive another $1.8 million in calendar year 2022. $300,000 of this amount was appropriated in the FY 2022-23 adopted budget. The payment schedule can be viewed on the NC Opioid Settlements Data Dashboard.

Guilford County will also complete annual financial and impact reports that will be available to the public on this and the State’s website, ncopioidsettlement.org.

How Will Guilford County Use These Funds?

Section E of the MOA requires local governments to either utilize a prescribed list of strategies (identified as "Option A") or engage in a collaborative strategic planning process to utilize a broader array of strategies (identified as "Option B").

• Option A - Funds may be spent on one or more strategies from a shorter, more defined list of evidence-based, high-impact opioid abatement strategies.
• Option B - A local government first goes through a collaborative strategic planning process and then chooses a strategy from the list of Option A strategies or a longer list of strategies included in the national settlements.

The Guilford County Board of Commissioners voted for Option B to collaboratively engage and partner with the broader community. Opioid use disorders are complex and often associated with other substance use and/or mental health challenges, so our approach to creating solutions needs to be strategic and involve providers that help provide concurrent treatment. To help facilitate this work, the Board of Commissioners approved a Drug & Injury Prevention Manager position to help organize both the strategic planning process and overall engagement with the primary stakeholders (“taskforce”) and the community.