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Portland staff report mismatch between opioid fund goals and applicants; committee to explore scaled day‑space and other options
Summary
City staff told the committee the lone day‑space applicant requested a short‑term lease and a budget that likely exceeds available settlement funding. Staff recommended pausing to reassess options including preserving core services, continuing syringe redemption and exploring alternative, smaller or differently located day‑space models.
Portland staff updated the Health and Human Services and Public Safety Committee on July 8 about the city’s use of opioid settlement funds and outlined concerns about how best to spend a council allocation of those funds.
Maggie McLaughlin, director of Health and Human Services, told the committee the city joined the national opioid litigation and by September had received about $1,380,000 in settlement payments, with future payments averaging roughly $235,000 per year through 2039. In October the council directed $1,300,000 of the settlement funds toward three priorities: a syringe redemption program, on‑peninsula methadone treatment and a day space. McLaughlin said the syringe redemption program began in January and is performing ‘‘very well.’’ Staff estimate continuing syringe redemption would cost less than $75,000 annually.
Staff issued a request for…
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