Santa Cruz County seeking community input for opioid settlement funds

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, Calif. (KION-TV)- UPDATE ON AUGUST 27, 2023 AT 6:40 PM- The Santa Cruz County Health Services Agency will be hosting two town halls to discuss how they will use the county's opioid settlement funds.

Health officials will be hosting an virtual town hall in English only on Wednesday night from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. The link to register to attend the town hall is right here.

On September 6, there will be an in-person meeting for Spanish speakers at 275 Main Street, fourth floor in Watsonville. That meeting will take place from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. The link to register to attend the in-person meeting is right here.

Local leaders plan to address topics related to the opioid crisis in Santa Cruz County, opioid settlement fund litigation, results from a recent opioid settlement fund community survey and a spending plan based on survey results.

Original Stories

The Santa Cruz County Health Services Agency is asking for community input on how to use the County's opioid settlement funds to treat the opioid crisis.

The funding will be used towards the Health Services Agency’s Substance Use Disorder Services Program to reduce the impacts of the opioid crisis in Santa Cruz County.

"The opioid crisis continues to have devastating impacts on individuals and families across
our county," Casey Swank, Santa Cruz County Behavioral Health Services’ Director of Substance Use Disorder Services said in a statement. "We have a historic opportunity through the opioid settlement funds to be thoughtful and intentional about how we address this epidemic and make meaningful
investments to help change the trajectory of this crisis."

The Health Services Agency said that multiple cities throughout the County will receive $26 million over the next 18 years.

The state recommends that the County uses the funding in multiple ways.

• Matching funds or costs for substance use disorder (SUD) facilities with an approved
• project within the Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure program (BHCIP).
• Creating new or expanded SUD treatment infrastructure.
• Addressing the needs of communities of color and vulnerable populations, such as the unhoused population, that are disproportionately impacted by substance use disorders
• Helping people with SUD into treatment programs and away from the justice system
• through community education and harm reduction strategies.
• Interventions to prevent drug addiction in vulnerable youth.
• Purchasing Narcan for distribution and efforts to expand access

Community members can take the survey right here. The survey will be open until Friday Aug. 4.

Survey results will be shared at upcoming in-person town halls and virtual town halls that are currently in the planning stages. Those meetings will be in English and in Spanish.