Brevard County is seeking public input on the use of opioid settlement funds
Currently, Brevard County is conducting community outreach efforts to determine how best to use the $7 million in opioid settlement funds the county has received from the state.
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The funds are part of a historic national settlement with opioid manufacturers and distributors worth approximately $3 billion to Florida over 18 years.
The county is holding town hall meetings in each county and asking residents to complete an opioid survey.
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CLICK HERE to participate in the survey.
“We want to hear from people who have been victims of this, who have family members who have had addictions or who just want to give us their opinions on how we can best solve this problem in our community,” said Brevard County Communications Director Don Walker.
On Friday, Eyewitness News spoke with April Smith, who lost four family members to opioids, synthetic opioids and other drugs.
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“We need to stop the stigma about people who use by throwing them in jail and getting them treatment,” Smith said.
Smith is part of a small group of concerned parents who have led their own efforts to educate the public and shared donated doses of lifesaving NARCAN, which can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.
Walker said the county has about 2,500 overdoses each year.
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