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Harlan County Judge-Executive Dan Mosley has been selected to participate in the Opioid Solutions Leadership Network, a collection of county officials from across the nation taxed to find effective ways of using opioid settlement funds.

According to a news release, Mosley is one of three judge-executives from Kentucky chosen to participate in the panel, along with one health professional from the state.

The Opioid Solutions Leadership Network was created by the National Association of Counties (NACo) in partnership with the Vital Strategies organization.

The NACo website at The Opioid Solutions Leadership Network (naco.org) explains the program’s goals are too:

• Elevate the role of counties in effectively investing settlement funds to save lives and address the needs of people with substance use disorders.

• Provide a platform for county leaders to share knowledge and offer support to their counterparts across the country.

Mosley expressed his thoughts on being chosen to participate in the group.

“It’s an honor to be selected to participate in the Opioid Solutions Leadership Network,” Mosley said. “The drug problem has adversely impacted our nation in a way that has been felt by every family and every community … I look forward to working with others from across the nation selected for this important work to find real meaningful solutions that can be implemented in our communities to save lives, address needs of people with substance use issues, and find ways to make wise investments to help curb this epidemic.”

Along with Mosley, Madison County Judge-Executive Reagan Taylor, Boone County Judge-Executive Gary Moore, and Executive Director of the Graves County Agency for Substance Abuse Prevention Lauren Carr were also picked to participate.

“Kentucky is fortunate to have representation from all corners of our state as part of the Opioid Solutions Leadership Network,” said Jim Henderson, Executive Director of Kentucky Association of Counties (KACo). “As counties begin receiving settlement funds to address the dire effects of the prescription opioid epidemic, information and idea sharing are critical for the long-term success of the settlement program.”   

The NACo website explains members of the Opioid Solutions Leadership Network will spend the upcoming year researching opioid abatement strategies, including treatment, prevention, and recovery. The members of the panel will travel to one another’s communities to observe implemented opioid solutions.

The group will also receive assistance from Vital Strategies, a public health organization which has partnered with NACo in the project.

The Vital Strategies website at https://www.vitalstrategies.org/about-us/ states, “Vital Strategies helps governments strengthen their public health systems to contend with the most important and difficult health challenges. We design solutions that can scale rapidly and improve the lives of millions of people. Our mission is to work in partnership to reimagine evidence-based, locally driven policies and practices to advance public health.”

Along with the participants from Kentucky, the OSLN will include 26 officials and leaders from Florida, California, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Michigan, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

The release explains a $26 billion settlement was reached with pharmaceutical distributors Cardinal Health, McKesson, and AmerisourceBergan as well as Johnson & Johnson, which manufactured and marketed opioids. Agreements with Walmart, Teva Pharmaceuticals and Allergan were also recently reached for their roles in the opioid situation, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron recently announced. Kentucky will receive more than $645 million in settlement funds. Over 100,000 people died of a drug overdose in 2021 in the United States – the highest annual overdose death rate to date. Kentuckians made up 2,250 of those deaths, according to the Kentucky Office of Drug Control Policy.

For more information, go to https://www.naco.org/resources/opioid-solutions/leadership-network or https://www.vitalstrategies.org/about-us.