ASAM's guidelines on use of opioid settlement funds supported in Illinois

Abstract

The Illinois Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM) sent letters to Governor J.B. Pritzker and Attorney General Kwame Raoul this month urging them to immediately adopt the “Principles for the Use of Funds From the Opioid Litigation.” Developed by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and supported by the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM), five principles guide the use of opioid settlement funds with a focus toward abatement, public accountability and racial equity. In the letter, ISAM touted the utility of the principles to provide state leaders with a clear framework for directing resources to impacted communities. ISAM urged Governor Pritzker and Attorney General Raoul to facilitate the creation of a dedicated fund to secure all opioid settlement money and separate it from the state's general fund. Additionally, ISAM stressed the importance of investing settlement funds to support the expansion of evidence‐based programs proven effective in meeting the needs of individuals with substance use disorder and opioid use disorder. Finally, ISAM called on state officials to prioritize racial equity in the distribution of resources acquired from the opioid settlement