County to receive nationwide settlement to aid opioid abatement

Avery Shanahan, The Leader-Telegram, Eau Claire, Wis.
·2 min read

Jun. 16—EAU CLAIRE — The Eau Claire County Opioid Task Force is working with partners and administration to determine how to utilize settlement funds.

The County Board Committee on Administration will soon be presented with money allocated from global opioid settlements to aid in diminishing opioid abuse in the county.

After the opioid epidemic was identified as a public health crisis in 2017, numerous civil lawsuits were filed by the federal, state, and local governments against opioid distributors and manufacturers. In response to the various lawsuits, a settlement agreement was announced to resolve the majority of the lawsuits under the National Prescription Opiate Litigation.

The state of Wisconsin adopted legislation in the summer of 2021 to receive global settlements from major opioid distributors and manufacturers. AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health, McKesson and Johnson & Johnson settled and paid out $26 billion to local governments nationwide.

To receive the settlement, local governments must have separate accounts dedicated to the funds, and 85% of the funds must be used for opioid abatement.

Wisconsin is slated to receive approximately $402 million dollars. County Administrator Kathryn Schauf said Eau Claire County will receive just over $3.3 million of those funds over the span of 18 years.

Following payment for the attorney and court fees, the county will have approximately $2.5 million, or $137,000 for each of those years to use for opioid abatement purposes.

Wisconsin Counties Association has been working with county governments to potentially utilize an approach called securitization to secure their funding.

Securitization is the process of buying and bundling assets that produce a regular revenue stream — such as groups of mortgage loans, student loans or car loans — to create asset-backed securities, according to Shauf. The bundlers, or issuers, sell to investors who are looking for income-producing alternatives to traditional bonds.

"Securitization is essentially a loan ahead of time for money you're expecting to receive," Schauf said.

The board will eventually decide which approach it wants to use from a funding perspective, and the Opioid Task Force will respond with ideas for programs to aid in opioid abatement. Schauf said program ideas will come from internal programs already working on opioid abatement and citizen input.

"We're trying to be deliberate in the ways that we use (the money) so that we not only comply with the intent of the legislation, but we do what's best for the citizens of the county," Schauf said.

A packet of background information provided by the Task Force offered some preliminary recommendations for the committee to consider.

These projects and programs included Medication-Assisted Treatment support in the Eau Claire County Jail, sober living opportunities, peer support programs, no-questions-asked disposal for opioids and treatment for the uninsured.

County administration will be provided with recommendations regarding funding and programs at their next meeting.