(The Center Square) — Though discussed as a potential need in the spring, a summer meeting for the Pennsylvania Opioid Misuse and Addiction Abatement Trust will not take place.
Instead, the next planned meeting for the trust will happen in September, officials said. During the trust’s May meeting, a special meeting for the summer was expected to take place, but the need isn’t there.
“At this time there are no matters that require a meeting prior to September 7th,” said Heather Hiester, director of technology programs and partnerships for the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania, which provides administrative services for the trust.
At the last meeting, Trust Chairman Thomas VanKirk noted that $130 million had been provided to governments across the commonwealth.
That money can be used in a variety of ways to address opioid addiction and the social harms that come from it.
Montour County announced recently that it would spend $50,000 to support a Warm Handoff program where patients who survive an overdose are passed from an emergency department to a drug treatment provider for recovery.
Lancaster County will receive almost $1 million from the latest disbursement of the opioid settlement, but will not decide how to spend the funds until later in the year. Officials created a framework for how to spend the money, with most of the initiatives in progress.
Other counties, however, are not so clear on how they can spend the money. Lancaster County has consulted with the trust to clarify whether the money could be spent on a drug task force, for instance.
Confusion on the county level could have significant consequences. The vast majority of the funds, about 70%, will be spent in Pennsylvania by counties.
The trust will direct more than $1 billion for Pennsylvania, but has been criticized for secret meetings, a lack of transparency, and withholding documents.
