Report: Wisconsin communities receiving millions in opioid settlement funds as overdose deaths decline

With opioid overdose deaths in Wisconsin falling to their lowest level in four years, a new report finds some communities around the state are still working on plans for using money they are receiving from a 2021 national settlement against drug manufacturers. 

Wisconsin will get over $780 million by 2038 from the settlement, according to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services. That money is being split between the state and 87 local governments in Wisconsin.

At least 85 percent of the money must be used for abatement of the opioid epidemic.

Under state law, local governments will receive 70 percent of the settlement money, while the state will get 30 percent. A Wisconsin Policy Forum report said local governments in the state had received almost $123 million from the settlement by the end of last year. There’s no spending data available for local governments yet, according to the report. 

Ari Brown, the report’s author, said many smaller counties and municipalities might not have the “public health infrastructure” available to quickly develop plans on how to use the money.

“Governments around the state are having to figure out how to spend these large buckets of money that are coming in, in ways that are most impactful to their communities,” Brown said in an interview with WPR. “Not every community is the same in these regards, and this is money that is going to be coming in for quite a while.” 

The report said local governments will report to the state in May on its, “2024 settlement fund uses.”

“Key informants we interviewed noted that counties and municipalities might have spent 2023 determining where best to devote their resources, as opposed to immediately spending their settlement allotments,” the report said. 

Brown said local governments could also be thinking about the future. 

“I think a lot of these local governments, especially, are thinking about how do we set up these systems that even when the money runs out in 2038, we’ve built something to last that is going to really aid with the health of our residents,” Brown said. 

Milwaukee County is set to collect a total of about $102 million, according to the report.

The county allocated $16.5 million it received from the settlement so far to 15 projects from 2023 until 2025. Those projects include installing vending machines filled with harm reduction supplies throughout the county. The money also funds a team that goes door to door handing out harm reduction kits in areas that have seen a large number of overdoses. 

“We just continue to be grateful for the opportunities that it [settlement funds] brings to our community,” said Jennifer Wittwer, the director of Milwaukee County’s Community Access to Recovery Services.

Meanwhile, overdose deaths involving opioids are on the decline across the state. There were 1,075 opioid overdose deaths from June 2023 to June 2024, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention included in the report.

That’s down more than 26 percent from the 1,464 opioid related deaths in 2022, according to Wisconsin Department of Health Services data.

“The downward trend in opioid overdose deaths in Wisconsin since late 2023 is welcome news after they previously had increased for decades,” the report states. “Now, the state will have around $780 million to spend through 2038 on measures meant to continue pushing that trend in the right direction.

But Brown said he’s unsure if the timing of the decline has anything to do with the opioid settlement funds being allocated.

State funding capital projects, Narcan direct

According to the report, the state received $75.3 million from the settlement by the end of 2024. About  $64.4 million had been allocated, while $15.4 million had been spent as of the end of last year.

Much of that money is being spent on prevention and treatment services, according to the report.

“According to officials at DHS [Wisconsin Department of Health Services], the department determined where best to use funds through a combination of feedback from a wide range of impacted communities, monitoring of state and national data, and other evidence-based practices.” the report said.

The Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee is ultimately determining  how the funds will be spent by the state.

The Policy Forum report found Wisconsin has focused the largest portions of the funding so far on projects for treatment facilities, and for the state’s Narcan Direct program, which provides overdose-reversing drug to health department’s and law enforcement across the state.

Wisconsin’s 11 federally recognized tribal governments have received a total of $12 million to use on prevention, treatment, recovery, harm reduction, health care and more in their communities, the report states.

Madison-based Recovery.com was awarded $300,000 over four years from the settlement. CEO Ben Camp said the platform helps find people the best substance use treatment options available for them.

“We’re really excited to be a part of that [settlement funds] and hopefully help Wisconsinites find the right treatment for them,” Camp said.