Pierce County to get $14M in opioid lawsuit settlement. How will the money be spent?

Pierce County will receive roughly $14 million from a state-negotiated settlement with opioid distributors, which officials plan to use to help combat the far-reaching effects of the opioid epidemic locally, County Council Chairman Derek Young said Wednesday.

The news comes after county lawmakers on Tuesday formally approved a deal negotiated by Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson, whose office announced in May that three opioid distributors would pay the state $518 million to resolve a lawsuit filed more than two years earlier.

The Attorney General’s Office sued McKesson Corp., Cardinal Health Inc. and AmerisourceBergen Drug Corp. for their roles in contributing to the drug crisis, and other jurisdictions joined the lawsuit, including Pierce County.

“When we started the Opioid Task Force, it was with this day in mind,” Young said in a statement, referring to the regional response to the epidemic between the county, city of Tacoma and the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department.

“We can’t bring back the lives we’ve lost or unwind the damage done,” he said. “But these funds will provide treatment and other services for our residents and prevention programming to reduce misuse of illicit narcotics.”

Examples of possible uses for the funds include treating opioid-use disorder, supporting those with addictions who are pregnant or in the criminal justice system, and educating first responders, according to a county slide presentation.

The money to the county will be paid out over 17 years. Through the first seven years, fees and other costs will be deducted from the total.

Cities with more than 10,000 residents in the county are eligible for a separate pool of $9.35 million from the settlement, which Young said “anticipates local jurisdictions will work together to develop regional solutions that cross jurisdictional boundaries.”