ARAPAHOE COUNTY, Colo. — Arapahoe County is spending millions of dollars from a settlement with drug companies, to help with the effects of the opioid crisis.
The $26 billion settlement was reached in 2021 between four drug companies -- McKesson, Cardinal Health, AmerisourceBergen and Johnson & Johnson -- and state and local governments nationwide.
Now, the local governments get to put the money to use. In 2023, Arapahoe County handed out more than $2.3 million to tackle the opioid epidemic.
“The overdose and opioid epidemic has been dramatic for the nation, and Arapahoe County is not immune to that,” Jennifer Ludwig, the public health director for Arapahoe County, said. “The death rate from all opioids has increased almost fivefold in Arapahoe County from 2017 to 2022."
Ludwig said it's even worse for fentanyl specifically.
“It increased almost 17-fold from 2017 to 2022,” Ludwig said.
The deputy director of medical care at the Arapahoe County jail, Carl Anderson, said he was excited when he heard the news they would receive about half a million dollars.
Anderson said it will help them expand their medication-assisted treatment program, affecting about 1,000 people in the jail.
“Just to make sure that they're not having any lapse in their treatment and so that we can get their opioid use disorder diagnosis treated,” Anderson said. “The program is a great program in that it addresses substance use disorder with an emphasis on opioid use disorder. So for those individuals who are experiencing incarceration, since June of 2018, they have been able to continue the meds such as methadone, or suboxone, or vivitrol.”
The county said the money was split up like this:
- $572,086: Detox and Residential; Full Substance Use Disorder Service Walk-in Center: Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office, to increase capacity of existing Medication-Assisted Treatment Program.
- $203,662: Sober Living and Transitional Safety Zones: Hazelbrook Community Center, to open a TSZ home to guide people through the process of physically withdrawing from drugs and alcohol and then entering a sober living home, with the ability to support 12 individuals through a variety of services.
- $209,968: Peer Navigators: Hornbuckle Foundation and Tribe Recovery, to enhance capacity of existing program through additional paid staff and training.
- $265,402: Harm Reduction: Arapahoe County Public Health, to expand current programs on the east and west sides of the county, integrate STI testing and referrals and provide training for partner organizations.
- $74,325: Co-responders: Aurora Research Institute, to conduct a survey to identify gaps for coordination in regional co-responder teams.
- $978,878: Youth Leadership Program: Cherry Creek School District, to support and expand on existing year-round leadership program, develop training to implement similar programming in other school districts and bring together a cohort of participants across other organizations.
The money the jail got is already at work to hire more staff to keep up with demand.
“So that we don't have people on a waitlist and that we can hopefully just make sure that the treatment is as fluid as possible,” Anderson said. “With the additional funds, we are able to add to our personnel. We are going to add some nursing staff, a licensed mental health professional.”
Cherry Creek School District said this about the $978,878 they received:
“We are thrilled to partner with Arapahoe County and look forward to the positive outcomes this will bring to both our students and community. While we are currently in the initial stages of allocating this funding within the Youth Leadership Program, we have already seen the impact this program has on our students. We know this additional support will significantly enhance our students’ understanding of substance abuse and prevention.”
County leaders recognize this isn't a quick fix.
"Part of this settlement agreement, it’s 18 years of funding, and we are just in our first year of distributing those funds," Ludwig said.
But it's certainly a step toward saving any lives they can.
“There's definitely hope and there's light at the end of this tunnel by being able to invest in our communities and prevent and get to those who need our services,” Ludwig said. “But it will take a long time to get in front of this. Very concerned about what is happening in our community, and this funding will hopefully help us get a handle and curb those overdose deaths from happening.”
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