Great reporting by @priscillatotiya.bsky.social @elpasomatters.bsky.social on how the county, city, and local hospital are using their opioid settlement funds... including $411k spent on demolishing an old strip club building elpasomatters.org/2025/12/01/e...

For over two years, the city of Bangor, ME, has been in the throes of a serious HIV outbreak. @aneripattani.bsky.social discusses the challenges of tracking transmission and treating those infected, and how harm reduction measures could turn the tide. podcast.publichealth.jhu.edu/981-maines-l...

I got to discuss how opioid settlement money is being spent (hint: sock hops and mixed martial arts demos) in my home state of Connecticut on a podcast from the state! Listen here: www.podbean.com/eas/pb-6i4rt...

Missouri auditor recommends better oversight for opioid settlement spending after First Alert 4 reporting www.firstalert4.com/2025/11/13/m...

🔔 When Trump posted a video of budget director Russell Vought as the grim reaper, public health workers recognized a kernel of truth. My latest piece @kffhealthnews.org couldn't be more important. Art by the incredible @oonazenda.bsky.social 🧵 kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

I got to speak with @cbsnews.com about a recent investigation by @kffhealthnews.org @johnshopkinssph.bsky.social & @shatterproofhq.bsky.social into how states & localities are spending billions in opioid settlements. Hint: The words tasers, drones, & sock hop come up. www.cbsnews.com/video/invest...

🧵Is opioid settlement $ living up to its promise? @kffhealthnews.org @johnshopkinssph.bsky.social & @shatterproofhq.bsky.social built a database showing 10,500+ ways it was spent—or not—last year, from treatment & housing to police drones & a drug awareness magician kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

Great project from @bakerinstitute.bsky.social tracking how the 21 largest local govts in Texas are spending their opioid settlement money. These localities have no reporting requirements, so researchers are filling a critical gap in public knowledge here. rice1.osn.mghpcc.org/crc-ssl/Opio...

Mississippi Today opens 'black box' of opioid settlement spending mississippitoday.org/2025/09/15/b...

A New England state is battling the largest HIV outbreak in its history. The local factors that shaped it can shed light on what to expect from Trump’s policies on homelessness and drug use. @kffhealthnews.org kffhealthnews.org/news/article... kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

Independent rural hospitals are increasingly joining networks that share resources and bargaining power. The goal is to save money and improve patient care without losing their independence by joining a large health system. Reporting from Bowman, ND: kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

I'm excited to be a part of the @who.int Africa Region's webinar this Wednesday discussing key solutions any country can implement for #WorldSuicidePreventionDay. I'll be presenting on how media and journalists can play a role. It's free for all. Please join. Zoom: lnkd.in/gAmTW8aM

Goliath vs David: UnitedHealth Group's multibillion dollar PBM (Optum Rx) is suing 5 KY counties (one as small as 8,000 residents) to try to force them out of national opioid lawsuits against the company. @kffhealthnews.org @statesnewsroom.com @kentuckylantern.com kentuckylantern.com/2025/08/19/g...

🧵Billions in opioid settlement💰is meant to help curb addiction—but what happens if it’s misspent? Some advocates say state attorneys general should be paying closer attention. Until they do, a crowdsourced database tracking potential misuse could help. kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

More construction workers die by suicide than die by work-related injuries. A little known federal agency was leading research and programs to address the crisis. Now, most of its staff has been cut. My latest for @kffhealthnews.org & @cbsnews.com.web.brid.gy kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

There's very little oversight on how local govts nationwide are spending billions in opioid settlement money. This newly released report from @njcomptroller.bsky.social is a rare exception. The office found the town of Irvington "wasted" $600k+ on "awareness concerts." www.nj.gov/comptroller/...

“Workplace mental health is one of the most underappreciated yet critical areas we could intervene on,” said a former NIOSH worker. “We were just starting to get some strong support from all the players involved...This administration has blown that apart.” kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

Great reporting out of West Virginia - by great student journalists - about where opioid settlement money is going in a state that's long been considered the epicenter of the opioid and overdose crisis.

🚨My latest: I’ve been talking with HIV activists since Trump took office. Their organizing is rooted in pivotal social movements in America: AIDS to civil rights. My reporting started in a Black church in the Mississippi Delta. It was the perfect place to begin. kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

Tons of great stories in here — guarantee you’ll get some ideas! Great working on this with @edmahon.bsky.social and @aneripattani.bsky.social

I was honored to join @nabarund.bsky.social‬ & Keli McLoyd on ‪@the1a.org‬ this week to discuss what's behind the recent decline in overdose deaths, how federal cuts affect addiction services & the latest opioid settlement news, including Purdue Pharm: the1a.org/segments/why...

For months, the Trump admin has been discussing canceling the national suicide lifeline 988's press 3 option, which offers specialized services for LGBTQ+ ppl. Now it's happening. @trevorproject.bsky.social says they got a stop work order effective July 17 www.thetrevorproject.org/blog/trump-a...

Thanks WAMU for inviting me to speak about opioid settlement money - how it's being spent in DC and how that compares to national trends. wamu.org/story/25/05/...

‪Very excited to present @IRE_NICAR next month with @edmahon.bsky.social‬ & Drew Hawkins! We'll be sharing 60 rapid-fire ideas for stories on opioid settlement money & public health topics in 60 minutes. You'll walk away with inspiration for quick turns, features & investigations.

What does Trump’s early budget proposal say about the 988 crisis hotline, suicide prevention & programs to address addiction? My latest for @kffhealthnews.org with notes from @afspnational.bsky.social, @drugpolicyorg.bsky.social, ‪@paulnestadt.bsky.social kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

Of the $4.4m in opioid settlement funds Houston has received so far, over $500k has been spent on naloxone, opioid-simulating goggles, embroidered sweaters, computer gear, legal settlements & personnel, @houstonlanding.bsky.social found via public record requests houstonlanding.org/amid-hundred...

Louisiana receives millions a year in opioid settlement funds, but audit says there's no oversight www.nola.com/news/healthc...

Update: Trump admin asks to pause the lawsuit while it reconsiders mental health parity regulations, potentially rescinding or modifying them, per court filing. In the meantime they won't enforce parts of the rule that went into effect this year. litigationtracker.law.georgetown.edu/wp-content/u...

I know "mental health parity" sounds wonky. Add an industry lawsuit and many ppl are ready to tune out. But this is important. At stake is ppl's ability to afford therapy & medications for depression, anxiety, addiction, eating disorders, autism & more. kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

“You're never going to get #MAHA if you don't integrate mental health," says Patrick Kennedy. Will Trump's agenda align with #mentalhealth parity? kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

NEW: The last time Missouri's Medicaid program was strapped for cash: - 100,000 people lost their health insurance, - credit card debt went up, - debt in collections increased. Now, Republicans in Congress are considering cuts that would big even bigger and hit every state. My latest 👇

My latest, for @kffhealthnews.org and @cbsnews.com: Social Security is cracking. It's declaring people wrongly dead. Beneficiaries and lawyers say records are getting misplaced. Checks are getting sent to the wrong address. The agency is getting worse, they think, at sending money to people:

Money set aside to help NH's opioid crisis could be steered elsewhere in the state budget via @nhpr.bsky.social www.nhpr.org/health/2025-...

Covid-era funding wasn’t just for infectious disease. A good chunk went to addiction recovery programs for things insurance won’t cover—like driving people to treatment & editing their resumes. Now those programs and the communities they serve are hurting. kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

Republicans say they want more people at work & fewer on welfare benefits. But does the Trump admin’s cuts to addiction recovery programs contradict that goal? “You can’t have manufacturing if people can't pass a urine drug test,” said former drug czar Rahul Gupta kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

Really thorough look at opioid settlement money in Massachusetts by @jongerhardson.bsky.social for @binjreports.bsky.social. Some going to law enforcement, some to admin, and a lot going nowhere. horizonmass.news/2025/04/15/m...

🧵Over the 2+ years I’ve been reporting on the opioid settlements, I’ve gotten tons of emails from victims of the opioid crisis asking why they haven’t received any payments yet. In this @kffhealthnews.org & @cbsnews.com article, I finally dug into the answer. kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

What a day. Started out by walking past the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services this morning and seeing these crazy long lines of staff waiting to get in. Turns out, many of them were notified that they were on leave or let go right around that time.

The Trump admin’s mass firings not only disrupt the lives of thousands of federal workers but also their spouses, kids & communities, says @jenniebrand.bsky.social. “We can see this impact years down the road.” Teamed up w/ @rachanadpradhan.bsky.social: kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

Zach Mecham has heard politicians demand that Medicaid recipients work or lose benefits. He's also run into Medicaid rules that effectively prevent many people with disabilities from holding full-time jobs. “Which is it? Do you want us to work or not?” kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

Excited to come across this article today and see that Michael Livingston at @iprnews.bsky.social is staying on this topic: www.interlochenpublicradio.org/ipr-news/202...

Creative & informative tool from @spotlightpa.bsky.social that let's you be the decision-maker on opioid settlement funds. Will you make the same choices that the state council that oversees the money in Pennsylvania has so far?

A Missouri city spent opioid settlement funds on a Ford F350 snowplow. The fire chief's justification: "We would use that vehicle to access patients-all patients really, not just opioids, but also opioid patients.” Strong accountability reporting @firstalert4.com www.firstalert4.com/2025/03/13/k...

Love seeing Michael Livingston build off @kffhealthnews.org's reporting/resources to investigate how opioid settlement $$ is being spent in his own community for @iprnews.bsky.social! If you're in northern Michigan, follow his ongoing coverage. www.interlochenpublicradio.org/ipr-news/202...

Great to see student journalists cover opioid settlement money in their communities too! Nice work, @idsnews.bsky.social www.idsnews.com/article/2025...

🧵Covid-era federal relief is drying up. Future federal funding is uncertain. Medicaid cuts are on the table. So where are states turning this budget season? To the supposedly protected, supposedly meant-for-addiction opioid settlement funds. kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

🧵Opioid settlement money was meant to be spent on the addiction crisis specifically. So when I heard a Kentucky county spent $15,000 of it on an ice skating rink, I needed to learn more. Here's what I found: kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

And another piece of significant news, following up on past reporting.The trust passed a resolution to hold a public listening session later this year. This a shift from the past, which VanKirk acknowledged, saying, "we've encouraged the public participation to be at the" local level.

In 2022, as opioid settlement money was starting to reach local governments in Pennsylvania, officials in rural Cameron County reached out to the state attorney general's office for guidance.

NEW: I want to tell you about some of the most courageous people I've ever met. One year ago they were injured during the mass shooting at the Super Bowl parade in Kansas City: Shot, trampled, burned, scarred. They've allowed @peggylowe.bsky.social and me into their lives to see their journeys