Local governments in county receive first payments from national opioid settlement

MEDINA — Village, township, city and county governments in Medina County received more than $100,000 in grants from the first round of the OneOhio settlement with national opioid distributors on Friday. Pharmaceutical companies such as AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson will pay about $26 billion to settle various lawsuits across the country that claim their business practices are connected to the opioid epidemic. This money will be distributed to communities nationwide. The OneOhio Recovery Foundation was created to receive and distribute money. Around 30 percent of the funds will go toward community recovery like the grants Medina County recently received. Medina County Commissioner Bill Hutson is the OneOhio representative for region 19, which covers Erie, Lorain, Medina, Wayne, Ashland, Richland and Huron counties. Hutson said there is a regional committee which evaluates proposals from local committees to see if it aligns with the mission of OneOhio. These proposals are then submitted to the full OneOhio board for consideration and funding. Over the next 18 years, governments will continue to get funding from the settlement. This initial payment for the state of Ohio as a whole was worth over $8.6 million. Local governments can use this funding in any way they see fit as it relates to drug addiction, Hutson said. Grants could be spent on drug treatment programs, recovery houses, public service announcements, educational programs and more. "It is designed so that there is flexibility inside each region and amongst the regions so that the money can be used and invested in the community in a way that's going to best serve that particular community," he said. Hutson said a settlement like this is important and a big deal. "This particular settlement is being structured in OneOhio so that the money that is coming to the state can really be focused on drug addiction for the long term," he said. "It's designed so that the money is protected and will really be available and be invested in the local communities to hopefully serve the communities for many, many years to come." These local governments in Medina County received this much in net year one direct payments: Medina County — $68,912.97 Brunswick City — $10,348.58 Medina City — $7,354.23 Wadsworth City — $6,576.55 Montville Township — $1,753.34 Brunswick Hills Township — $1,733.95 Medina Township — $1,562.49 Hinckley Township — $1,428.80 Lafayette Township — $637.86 Lodi — $594.99 Harrisville Township — $580.70 Guilford Township — $523.55 Sharon Township — $502.12 Seville — $478.65 Liverpool Township — $468.44 Contact reporter Madisyn Woodring at (330) 721-4049 or mwoodring@medina-gazette.com.