Board approves opioid settlement implementation plan, transfers funds to behavioral health

The Del Norte County Board of Supervisors on a unanimous vote approved an implementation plan for the county's portion of opioid settlement funds and directed Behavioral Health to manage the funds and meet the settlement reporting requirements.

The action approves the Opioid Settlement Work Group's recommendation, transfers the settlement account into the Department of Health and Human Services, Behavioral Health budget, and directs the behavioral health branch to comply with reporting and the approved implementation plan.

The plan presented by Cheyenne Hogan, Deputy Director for Behavioral Health, and Germaine Brubaker, facilitator of Rx Safe Del Norte, allocates the funds into four primary categories: a dedicated coordinator position to manage stakeholders and planning; expanded treatment capacity (local, out-of-county and in-custody); operating costs for stakeholder engagement, outreach and low-barrier services; and training/support plus some infrastructure set-aside to leverage longer-term behavioral health infrastructure funds. Hogan told the board the work…