Opioid Settlement Advisory Committee

In January 2022, Rhode Island joined the national opioid settlement with three major opioid distributors,  providing over $90 million in funding for state and local efforts to address Rhode Island’s opioid crisis. Together with settlements secured by Attorney General Neronha against opioid manufacturer Johnson & Johnson for $21 million and consulting firm McKinsey & Co. for $2.5 million, Rhode Island’s opioid litigation recoveries total more than $114 million over the next 18 years.

Rhode Island’s newly announced agreement with all of the state’s cities and towns ensures that all the funds will be directed to opioid abatement – including expanding access to opioid use disorder prevention, intervention, treatment, and recovery. Under the agreement:

• 20% of the funds secured for abatement will go directly to all cities and towns based on a population-driven formula to be used solely for opioid abatement purposes.
• 80% of the funds secured for abatement will be overseen by the state’s Executive Office of Health and Human Services and allocated to opioid abatement programs throughout the state.  In making these allocations, the Secretary of EOHHS will be informed by recommendations of an Advisory Committee, all subject to the state appropriations process.

The Advisory Committee, as required by the national settlement agreement, will be comprised of an equal number of state and municipal representatives, as well as expert and community representatives and will work closely with key organizations coordinating the state’s response to the crisis, including the Governor’s Overdose Prevention and Intervention Task Force.

Contact the Opioid Settlement Advisory Committee at OHHS.OpioidSettlement@ohhs.ri.gov

Settlement Documents

• State Opioid Payments to Date 12.13.2024
• Municipal Opioid Payments to Date 12.13.2024

Opioid Settlement Advisory Committee Member List

Appointed Chairperson

• Brandon Marshall Ph.D., Professor of Epidemiology

State Agency Representatives

• Rich Leclerc – Director of BHDDH
• Dr. Philip Chan, Consultant Medical Director, Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH)
• Deputy Attorney General Adi Goldstein, Office of the Attorney General
• State Court Administrator Julie Hamil, Rhode Island Supreme Court
• Representative Raymond Hull, Rhode Island House of Representatives

County Representatives

• Bristol County: Patricia Resende
• Kent County: Jeffrey Varone - Fire Chief, West Warwick Fire Department
• Newport County: Joseph Pratt - Executive Director and CEO, Boys and Girls Clubs of Newport County
• Providence County: Todd Manni - Director of Emergency Management & Community Outreach, Town of Smithfield
• Washington County: Matthew Moynihan, Chief of South Kingstown Police
• City of Providence: Rachel Ferrara – Data & Evaluation Manager at the City of Providence’s Healthy Communities Office

Community

• Angela Ankoma - Vice President, Equity Leadership, Rhode Island Foundation
• Meko Lincoln - Community Liaison, Discovery House and Amos House

Experts

• Dennis Bailer - Overdose Prevention Program Director, Project Weber/RENEW
• Dr. Justin Berk - Medical Director, Rhode Island Department of Corrections
• Dr. Alexandria Macmadu - Associate Professor, Brown University

Process

• The Opioid Settlement Agreement is a Rhode Island-specific settlement that was negotiated by RIAG with opioid distributors.
• Under this agreement, the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) is serving as the coordinating state agency for the planning related to and use of these settlement funds.
• As part of the established Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) within the settlement, an Advisory Committee that will advise EOHHS on the use and distribution of the funds will be formed and held publicly.
• The Community and Expert positions will be determined by the appointed members of the Advisory Committee in accordance with the MOU.
• A Non-Voting Committee Chairperson will be appointed by the Governor.

Annual Reports

OSAC Annual Report-2024

OSAC Annual Report-2023

OSAC Annual Report-2022