A total of 90 Arizona cities and towns and all 15 counties have approved the One Arizona Memorandum of Understanding to distribute funds from future opioid settlements.
The agreement ensures that Arizona will receive the maximum amount of money available from future opioid settlements, including one under review with Cardinal, McKesson, AmerisourceBergen, and Johnson & Johnson.
Dubbed the One Arizona Plan, the Memorandum of Understanding provides funding for programs to address and ameliorate opioid abuse, and includes reporting requirements for how money is used:
- 56% of the total settlement goes to local governments for opioid amelioration programs.
- 44% of the total settlement goes to a State fund for opioid amelioration programs.
- Funds must be spent in accordance with approved, nationally recognized strategies to pay for future costs incurred by the State and local governments to address the opioid epidemic. Approved uses include expenses related to the treatment of opioid use disorder, support for people in treatment and recovery, support for people who have or are at risk of developing opioid use disorder, and prevention of overuse and misuse of opioids.
- Transparent reporting requirements for fund usage to ensure compliance with approved purposes.
- Flexibility for local governments to pool resources to increase the impact of settlement funds.
Arizona was among the first states to reach a statewide agreement.