Westchester County Commissioner of the Department of Community Mental Health (DCMH) Michael Orth has been appointed by State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins to serve on the Opioid Settlement Fund Advisory Board. After several initial settlements were reached with opioid manufacturers resulting in funds nearing $1 billion, the board was established by the state legislature to ensure funding was directed toward necessary programs to combat overdose and addiction. The board was placed under the Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS) to provide recommendations on how funding received by the Opioid Settlement Fund would be allocated.
Recommendations by the board are required to be evidence-based and can consider federal, state or local initiatives and activities that have shown to be effective in preventing and treating substance use disorders, as well as maintaining recovery. The board provides its recommendations in a written report to the Governor, the temporary president of the Senate, the speaker of the Assembly, the chair of the Senate Finance Committee, the chair of the Assembly Ways and Means Committee, and the chairs of the Senate and Assembly Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Committees by Nov. 1 each year.
Orth said: “I want to thank Senator Stewart-Cousins for her confidence in me to serve in this important role. I hope to bring the work we have done here in Westchester under our County Executive Ken Jenkins to the board and show how we have effectively allocated the funds that we have been entrusted with to make a real difference.”
