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County outlines opioid‑settlement awards and a new walk‑in addiction and mental‑health clinic
Summary
Pinellas County staff reported settlement funds and planned awards, including an expected multi‑million allocation to Operation PAR and Evera/Ebera Health to create a walk‑in clinic offering integrated addiction and mental‑health care; county officials said the program will include same‑day assessments and broad appointment capacity.
Commissioner Peters told the council that the county has begun distributing recovery funds from opioid litigation and plans to use a large portion for local treatment capacity. "We have 33,000,000 right now to give away," he said, and followed that with a likely near‑term award: "We are gonna award right now, probably in a month or 2, 25,000,000 to Operation PAR, and Ebera Health." Peters described a planned facility near 54th Avenue intended as a walk‑in center where people seeking addiction or mental‑health help can get assessment, treatment and case management.
Peters positioned the clinic as part of a broader effort to move addiction care out of the criminal justice system and into health‑care settings. He said the clinic will offer extended dosing hours for medication‑assisted treatment and integrated primary‑care services: "If you suffer from diabetes and you haven't been taking care of your diabetes, they're gonna help you with your diabetes." County staff said renovations will be required and the clinic likely will not be open for about a year after contracts are finalized.
Peters also reviewed the county's disaster‑recovery grants related to recent hurricanes and said communications staff are working to reach eligible residents; he stated that as of July 1 the county had spent $48,000,000 in award funds for hurricane victims and that more awards remain to be distributed.
