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County authorizes staff to pursue participation in remnant-defendant opioid settlement; EMS budget amendment approved
Summary
The board authorized county staff to evaluate and join a national remnant-defendant opioid settlement covering six defendants (estimated county share about $50,000) and approved Budget Ordinance Amendment No. 25 to increase EMS appropriations for an early-arriving ambulance and estimated Medicaid reimbursements; both items passed by voice vote.
The Alexander County Board of Commissioners authorized county staff to assess participation in a national opioid settlement covering six remnant defendants and to execute documents needed to join the settlement before the stated May 4, 2026 deadline.
County attorney Ben Falenbury told the board the remnant-defendant settlement groups include regional distributors and dispensers (Associated Pharmacies, JM Smith, Louisiana Wholesale Drug, Morris and Dixon, North Carolina Mutual Wholesale Drug, and United Natural Foods and several subsidiaries). He said the settlement would produce a combined national payment of $97,625,000 and estimated Alexander County's share at about $50,000 based on materials from the national attorneys; final allocation depends on participation rates and allocation formulas. Falenbury emphasized the county would sign a broad release that covers the listed defendants and that the release is an "all or nothing" choice for participation.
Separately, County Manager Justin Mundy presented Budget Ordinance Amendment No. 25 to increase EMS appropriations to cover an ambulance unexpectedly arriving in May or June (orders typically take 18'1 months) and to reflect estimated Medicaid reimbursement obligations for the fiscal year as required by NCDHHS. Mundy said the amendment would not use fund balance because EMS has sufficient revenues.
The board voted to authorize staff to pursue the opioid settlement participation paperwork and to approve the EMS budget amendment; both votes were taken by voice and recorded as carried in the meeting minutes, with no roll-call tallies in the transcript.
