Michigan AG prepares to receive opioid settlement money with treatment center tour

Michigan’s attorney general toured an addiction treatment center in Saginaw Monday.

It was in preparation of the state receiving around $800 million from a recent settlement with some of the nation’s top opioid distributors.

Attorney General Dana Nessel says other settlements in the works mean the state could get even more money in the long run.

“My hope is that ultimately, it’ll be over a billion dollars that we’ll be able to bring into the state and, you know, that money’s going to go to all kinds of assistance for people who are suffering from opioid use disorder,” Nessel said.

Much of that money will go toward local governments and municipalities that signed onto the agreement.

Money from the opioid distributor settlement will start going out to the state in the next few months.

Nessel said conversations like Monday’s help her give better advice to local municipalities about how to use this money.

“And the more facilities I talk to, treatment centers I talk to, the more people who are deeply vested and involved in treating this disorder, the better use I can be,” Nessel said.

During her discussion at the DOT Caring Center, team members described a variety of needs they have and issues they’ve noticed.

Those included the need for more professionals in the field and difficulties of using telehealth during the pandemic.

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