Attorney General launches new website with opioid crisis data
LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) – If Michiganders are looking to know more about the opioid epidemic, there’s a new resource available for that.
The State’s Attorney General, Dana Nessel, launched a new website Wednesday to make data and resources surrounding the crisis more widely accessible.
Opioid lawsuit settlements are bringing money in and Nessel wants local governments to know exactly when and how much money they will receive and get people the help they need.
between the years 2000 and 2020, state health officials say Michigan’s opioid death rate increased by almost 14 percent per year, on average. Nessel told 6 News this is a very serious issue. She hopes the new website can help slow the crisis.
“There’s a lot of suffering out there and people are hurting. And people continue to die at alarming rates,” Nessel said.
Through settlements with drug makers, pharmacies and others Michigan is expected to rake in nearly $1.6 billion between now and 2040. Half goes to the State, distributed through the Department of Health and Human Services. The other half goes to County, City, and Township Governments. Since the money comes in over the years, the website helps local Governments know how much money they’ll have to spend.
“Maybe you want to fund some programming, but not if it’s only for one year. So this is a way for every local community that’s participating to be able to see, here’s what we’re getting this year, next year the year after that, and so on,” Nessel said.
Commissioner Todd Tennis is involved with deciding how Ingham County will use its settlement money for opioid use prevention and treatment. He said the website offered him a chance to see what amount of money neighboring counties and cities are getting and their spending plans.
” It’s nice to have it compiled in a place where it’s easy to find easy to reference. That’s actually where I just found what Lansing and East Lansing are getting so that was handy,” Tennis said.
For the State side of the money, Nessel says service providers can apply for grants. It can all be done on the website.
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