CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Where all the money is going from the $37 million settlement between the state and McKesson Corporation in an opioid lawsuit has yet to be decided.
Delegates Andrew Robinson (D-Kanawha) and Kayla Kessinger (R-Fayette) have an idea.
The pair have sent a letter to Attorney General Patrick Morrisey to request that his office direct funds from the settlement to substance addiction treatment in West Virginia.
“We feel that if there is going to be money awarded to the state of West Virginia due to the opioid crisis caused by a lot of these pill manufacturers and wholesalers, it should be allotted back to the drug crisis and for recovery and treatment,” Robinson told MetroNews.
In the letter sent on Friday, the delegates point out the Ryan Brown Addiction Prevention and Recovery Fund for landing spot for the dollars.
The fund is used to provide recovery and treatment facilities around West Virginia.
Robinson said where the funds go is up to Morrisey but wants to hear from him soon about giving it to treatment centers.
“I hope the Attorney General would make a statement this week that his wish for these funds is to be immediately deposited into the Ryan Brown Fund,” Robinson said.
“In the past, he’s made the statement that it would have to go into the daily cost of his office and I think that is probably not appropriate.”
The settlement between the state and McKesson was announced last week by Morrisey’s office and set up much debate around the amount in it.
In a release, Kessinger said, “I hope that the Attorney General will invest this money in substance use prevention and treatment efforts in our state. Communities in every part of the state are struggling to fight the effects of the drug epidemic, and they need the help that this funding can provide.”
Kessinger was unavailable for comment to MetroNews on Monday.