LISTEN: A deadline to apply for millions of dollars in grants to help treat people affected by the opioid crisis — from a settlement the state received from pharmaceutical companies in 2022 — is approaching. GPB’s Ellen Eldridge reports. 

People wait for an update at a meeting April 8, 2024, for the Georgia Opioid Crisis Abatement Trust.

People wait for an update at a meeting April 8, 2024, for the Georgia Opioid Crisis Abatement Trust.

Credit: Ellen Eldridge / GPB News

The 2025 deadline to apply for millions of dollars in grants to help treat people impacted by the opioid crisis is approaching.

The money comes from a settlement the state received from pharmaceutical companies in 2022, and is available to organizations that help people prevent, treat and recover from addiction.  

Cardinal, McKesson and AmerisourceBergen — the nation’s three major pharmaceutical distributors — and opioid manufacturer and marketer Johnson & Johnson settled their lawsuits for $26 billion.

Georgia’s share is just over $636 million, which is being distributed by the state Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities Opioid Crisis Abatement Trust over 18 years.

The first $50 million in grants went to 127 projects across the state for up to two years, said Taylor Peyton with the Trust.

"Currently our portal is open," she said. "We have received about 48 complete submissions."

Of those, 20 are on the state level and 28 are on a regional level. Another 261 applications are currently in draft status. 

The 2025 deadline to apply for grant money is June 18.

Tags: Georgia  opioid epidemic  opioid crisis  health  opioid settlement