Nevada Laws: Opioid Settlement Funds

All across the country, state governments are preparing to receive funding from the forthcoming opioid settlement. Last week, Nevada took an important step toward ensuring its settlement funding is spent exactly as it was intended: To prevent and treat addiction, using proven research and best practices.

On Friday, Governor Sisolak signed two new pieces of legislation into law in Nevada.

SB 390 creates a suicide and mental health emergency hotline in the state while also establishes the Fund for a Resilient Nevada, which will allocate funding from the forthcoming opioid settlements. Another bill, AB 374, establishes an SUD working group of experts and those with lived experience to provide recommendations and guidance for how that funding should be spent. The dedicated fund for these dollars will ensure the money is incremental and does not replace funding for existing programs and services. It also will prevent dollars from going to unrelated causes and will ensure that the money is spent in ways that will save the most lives.

Shatterproof’s Vice President of State Policy, Courtney Hunter, was on hand to celebrate the bill signing at the Nevada State Capitol. She was joined by several of our key partners in the state, including Dr. Stephanie Woodard of Nevada’s Department of Health and Human Services and Assemblywoman Jill Tolles.

Ensuring that settlement dollars are spent wisely in every state is one of Shatterproof’s biggest policy priorities. It’s so exciting to see real change being made as a result of persistence, state collaboration and leadership. Thank you to all of our partners, Ambassadors like Kelsey Matthews, and tireless advocates in Nevada. You made this happen!