Great Lakes Wire

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has launched a new website to provide information on opioid settlement distributions. The site aims to assist residents and local governments by offering resources for addiction help, links to settlement documents, an opioid settlement payment estimator, and connections to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) for state grants.

The website also features links to the Opioid Advisory Commission, the Michigan Association of Counties Settlement Dashboard, and highlights how funds are being used statewide. This includes access to local dashboards, taskforces, and strategic plans.

Since taking office in 2019, Attorney General Nessel has focused on addressing the opioid crisis. Her efforts have resulted in over $1.6 billion in settlements with companies like McKinsey & Co., Cardinal Health, McKesson Inc., AmerisourceBergen, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Teva Pharmaceutical, Allergan Pharmaceutical, CVS, Walmart, and Walgreens. These funds are allocated for opioid-use disorder treatment and remediation.

“When joining the national settlements," said Nessel, "we knew we didn’t want a repeat of the tobacco settlements – where the money went into the General Fund and wasn’t directly spent on nicotine prevention and remediation – and we also didn’t want the money to get stuck in political limbo while local communities were hurting.” She added that her commitment is not only to maximize distribution amounts but also to ensure that funds are spent on medically proven solutions tailored to community needs.

Attorney General Nessel has engaged with local governments and service providers through statewide roundtables. According to MDHHS data from 2000 to 2020, Michigan's opioid death rate increased by an average of 13.9% annually. In 2022 alone, there were 2,998 overdose-related deaths reported in Michigan.

The new website is available online for public access.