An Opioid Abatement Commission is now in place in Lexington. The panel will make recommendations on how best to use funds received from the National Opioid Litigation settlement.
Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton made the formal announcement at City Hall.
“Commissioners….You have an important job ahead of you,” said Gorton.
Gorton said sustainable solutions to the opioid addiction crisis are being sought. Dr. Stephanie M. Raglin, a licensed clinical alcohol and drug counselor, is chairing the commission. Raglin said progress occurs, but overdoses are still increasing.
“We’ve come a long way, but we have such a long way to go. But, with the help of God and all of us the hope is that we take back our loved ones. That we take back our communities and bring a sense of healing to all,” said Raglin.
The Commission will allocate funds coming to Lexington from drug companies that helped fuel the epidemic. Funds could come to Lexington for some 20 years.
John Moses serves as team leader for Harm Reduction Services at the Fayette Health Department. He said progress can come in phases.
“You are using drugs. Perhaps you’re injecting heroin or fentanyl. If you would change to smoking or snorting that same drug..that’s harm reduction. Less like to get endocarditis, less likely to get skin infections,” said Moses.
Moses noted the City has received the first round of funding. That total is in excess of two million dollars. He added work groups will be deciding how to spend that money best. Moses said a community assessment through the University of Kentucky is aimed at determining where the gaps are.
Here's more with John Moses of the Fayette County Health Department:
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