On Wednesday, Washoe County Public Health held an Opioid Use Needs Assessment to determine how best to use opioid settlement funds.
Lauren Beal, the Grants and Community Program Analyst for Washoe County, says, "Opioid use is an ongoing problem within our community. Along with a lot of other substance use disorders, it's an urgent need for our community because people are dying on a daily basis here in Washoe County."
Washoe County and the State of Nevada sued opioid manufacturers, who settled the suit for $40 million over the course of 20 years.
"We are using the money in alignment with the community needs assessment, so this conversation is guiding how exactly we're going to spend the money," said Beal.
All sorts of community members were brought in to participate in the assessment.
During the assessment, they talked a lot about recovery services and treatment options that will help those who use opioids become sober and get back into the community.
"We need to continue to prioritize how we interrupt substance use disorder," said Beal. "How do we help families stay together so we can really see a change in how we are dealing with this in our community and have our friends and loved ones stay with us?"
She adds, "This is just describing what our needs, our strengths, and our gaps are in the community so that we can prioritize the funding appropriately."
Beal says the assessment on Wednesday had a great turnout and was productive in moving the conversation on fighting opioid use forward.
"It was extremely productive," she said. "We had a great turnout from a lot of different perspectives from different people in the community, and there was a lot of good conversation, and I'm really excited to dive into the notes and make some final suggestions."
From here, they'll take a look at the assessment from a few different perspectives.
Beal says, "One, is it possible? Can we actually do it? Is it urgent? Is this something that needs to happen right now, or can it wait a few more years to be our main priority? As well as this, is this going to most impact the people who are most affected by opioid use disorders?"
She adds, "Our community has been devastated by the loss of life, and our community members and our loved ones deserve better, and so we will do better."
If you would like to give your own thoughts and comments on the topic, you can email woarf@washoecounty.gov.
