The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Executive Office of Health and Human Services
One Ashburton Place, Room 1109
Boston, Massachusetts 02108
CHARLES D. BAKER
Governor
KARYN E. POLITO
Lieutenant Governor Tel: (617) 573-1600
Fax: (617) 573-1891
MARYLOU SUDDERS www.mass.gov/eohhs
Secretary
September 30, 2022
Michael D. Hurley, Clerk
State House, Room 335
Boston, MA 02133
Steven T. James, Clerk
State House, Room 145
Boston, MA 02133
RE: Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund Advisory Council
Dear Clerks Hurley and James:
On behalf of the Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund Advisory Council (Council), I am pleased to
provide the following letter summarizing the Council’s activities to date in 2022, pursuant to Chapter
309 of the Acts of 2020. Please accept this letter as the Council’s Annual Report.
Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund: To date, the Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund (Fund)
has received $35,447,802.83 from opioid settlement recoveries secured by the Attorney General’s
Office, including $12,970,317.00 in fiscal year 2022. Per statute, these funds are administered by the
Executive Office of Health and Human Services, in consultation with the Opioid Recovery and
Remediation Fund Advisory Council. During the Council’s second year, a total of $9.225 million in
expenditures were made from the Trust Fund. Please find an overview of these expenditures in the
Council Activities section below.
Council Activities: As of this report, the Council has met three times in 2022 and has focused its
sessions on reviewing currently approved funded initiatives, finalizing the Council’s principles for the
Fund, and embarking on an initial strategic plan to ensure the investment of funds to address racial
and geographic disparities with a goal of creating a full continuum of prevention, harm reduction,
treatment, services and supports for an individual’s recovery from opioid addiction and in support of
their loved ones. A specific objective is that these funds augment and do not replace services and
supports that are currently funded. To date, the Council has allocated a total of $9.25million to four
specific initiatives overseen by the Department of Public Health’s Bureau of Substance Abuse
Services (DPH-BSAS). Below, please find an overview of each initiative:
Expansion of Harm Reduction Services
Total funding: $3.4million
• Rolled out Community Naloxone Purchasing Program allowing community-based programs to purchase
naloxone through the State Office of Pharmacy Services at subsidized, public interest pricing.
• Developed a competitive application opportunity for existing harm reduction partners to collaborate,
expand through sub-contractual arrangements with organizations that reach historically underserved
populations and communities including Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) individuals
who are at high risk for experiencing overdose.
• Increased access to fentanyl test strips by making them available at no-cost through the -newly
established Massachusetts Clearinghouse.
Increased Access to Medication for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD)
Total funding: $3.1 million
• Increased access to MOUD in underserved areas through opening two new opioid treatment programs in
Ware and Greenfield respectively. The addition of these two sites will build upon existing OTP
expansion efforts that have yielded an increase approximately 2,000 OTP patients over the 2-year
period since Covid
• Expanded access to MOUDs by adding 3 new mobile methadone delivery programs and in addition to 2
new med units.
Expansion of Supportive Housing Programs
Total funding: $2,000,000
• Expanded statewide capacity of 14 homeless service providers that has resulted in a total of 380 units
contracted for FY23. As of August, 233 of these units have been filled despite ongoing staffing hiring
challenges.
Community Outreach and Engagement
Total funding: $750,000
• Conducted state and national environmental scan of community outreach programming for people who
use opioids. Key findings that there is no existing community outreach model specifically for this
population and that Massachusetts is on the cutting edge of innovation in this area by developing a new
model.
• Finalizing a new proposed model for community outreach based off findings from landscape analysis.
In 2022, the Massachusetts Legislature appropriated and the Governor signed $110M in ARPA
funding to support loan repayment for workers in Community Health Centers (CHCs), Community
Mental Health Centers (CMHC), and acute-inpatient psychiatric settings. Workers in acute treatment
settings (ATS), clinical stabilization settings (CSS), CSS, and residential treatment settings for
substance use disorder were not included in this funding authorization; nor were certain outpatient
settings not classified as CHC or CMHC. As such, to capitalize and complement this student loan
repayment funding, the Secretary requested and the Council concurred that $15M in ORRF funds be
added to the July procurement to support loan repayment for Master level, Bachelor level, and
Associate level workers in ATS, CSS, residential treatment, and outpatient SUD treatment settings.
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The Council continues to receive regular updates on ongoing litigation and settlements from the
Office of the Attorney General. In March’s Council meeting, the Office of the Attorney General
reported the Commonwealth is expected to receive over $526 million in settlement funds over the
next 18 years. Approximately 60% of these settlement funds, roughly $344 million, will go directly to
the Fund and the remaining 40% will be split across 150 cities and towns in the Commonwealth.
The Council recognizes the significant impact that these settlement funds will have in our State’s
efforts to combat the opioid epidemic. In order to ensure the Fund has a maximum impact in
addressing racial and geographic barriers and ensuring a full continuum, the Council has embarked
on a 3-year strategic plan. Through a competitive procurement, KPMG, was engaged to support
these strategic planning efforts by conducting 2stakeholder sessions, highlighting best and promising
practices in other States and Municipalities, and assessing service gaps within the Commonwealth.
The Council acknowledges and appreciates the Legislature’s, Attorney General’s and Executive
Branch’s continued commitment to engage in assertive opioid prevention and treatment initiatives,
and investments in upstream prevention, particularly among historically underserved communities.
Sincerely,
Marylou Sudders
Secretary, Executive Office of Health & Human Services and
Non-voting Chair, Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund Advisory Council
Cc: The Honorable Karen E. Spilka, Senate President
The Honorable Ronald Mariano, Speaker of the House
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Appendix
Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund Advisory Council Statute
Legal Authority: Chapter 309 of the Acts of 2020
Statute:
Section 35OOO (a) There shall be an Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund. Expenditures from the
fund shall be made by the Executive Office of Health and Human services, without further appropriation
and consistent with the terms of settlements made in connection with claims arising from the
manufacture, marketing, distribution or dispensing of opioids, as applicable. The secretary of health and
human services, in consultation with the Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund advisory council
established in subsection (b), shall administer the fund.
The fund shall be expended to mitigate the impacts of the opioid epidemic in the commonwealth,
including, but not limited to, expanding access to opioid use disorder prevention, intervention, treatment
and recovery options. Amounts credited to the fund shall not be subject to further appropriation and
monies remaining in the fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not revert to the General Fund, but shall
instead be available for expenditure during the next fiscal year. Any fiscal year-end balance in the fund
shall be excluded from the calculation of the consolidated net surplus pursuant to section 5C of chapter
29.
There shall be credited to the fund: (i) amounts recovered by the commonwealth and credited thereto in
connection with claims arising from the manufacture, marketing, distribution or dispensing of opioids; (ii)
transfers from other funds authorized by the general court and so designated; (iii) funds from public or
private sources, including, but not limited to, gifts, grants, donations, rebates and settlements received
by the commonwealth designated to the fund; and (iv) any interest earned on such amounts.
(b) There shall be an Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund advisory council regarding the
expenditures from the fund. The council shall consist of the following members or their designees:
• the secretary of health and human services, who shall serve as a non-voting chair;
• 1 person to be appointed by the senate president;
• 1 person to be appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives;
• 1 person to be appointed by the minority leader of the senate;
• 1 person to be appointed by the minority leader of the house of representatives;
• 3 persons to be appointed by the governor, including not less than 1 person qualified by experience with
opioid use disorder, either first-hand or as a family member of an individual with opioid use disorder;
• 3 persons to be appointed by the attorney general, including not less than 1 person qualified by experience
with opioid use disorder, either first-hand or as a family member of an individual with opioid use
disorder; and
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 • 10 people to be appointed by the Massachusetts Municipal Association, Inc., who are officials employed
by a city or town and who represent the diversity of the commonwealth’s cities and towns; provided,
however, that not less than 2 officials appointed under this clause shall be employed by a city or town that
is a gateway municipality, as defined in section 3A of chapter 23A; and provided, further, that no 2
officials appointed under this clause shall be employed by a city or town that is in the same county.
In making appointments, the appointing authorities shall ensure that the council includes: (i) members
representing racially and socioeconomically diverse communities; (ii) members with public health
expertise concerning opioid use disorder; (iii) members with personal experience with opioid use
disorder; and (iv) members who will contribute to reducing disparities in health outcomes for
underserved communities experiencing opioid use disorder. The appointing authorities shall also
consider having racially diverse representation on the council.
The council shall hold no fewer than 4 meetings annually and the council shall make its
recommendations upon a majority vote. The council shall be subject to sections 18 to 25, inclusive, of
chapter 30A. Council members shall serve without compensation for terms of 2 years. Members shall
be reimbursed for actual expenses necessarily incurred in the performance of their duties. Any member
shall be eligible for reappointment. In the event of a vacancy, the original appointing authority shall
appoint a new member to fulfill the remainder of the unexpired term. Any member who is appointed
may be removed by the appointing authority. The secretary of health and human services shall provide
administrative support to the council.
(c) Annually, not later than October 1, the secretary of health and human services shall file a report on
the activity, revenue and expenditures to and from the fund in the prior fiscal year with the clerks of the
senate and the house of representatives, the house and senate committees on ways and means and
the joint committee on mental health, substance use and recovery and made available on the executive
office of health and human services’ public website. The report shall include, but not be limited to: (i)
the revenue credited to the fund; (ii) the amount of expenditures attributable to the administrative costs
of the executive office; (iii) an itemized list of the funds expended from the fund; and (iv) data and an
assessment of how well resources have been directed to vulnerable and under-served communities.
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 Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund Advisory Council Membership
Council Chair (non-voting)
• Marylou Sudders, Secretary, Executive Office of Health and Human Services
Appointed Members
• Jennifer Almonte, Public Health Nurse, City of Lynn (MMA appointment)
• Charles Anderson MD, MPH, MBA, President/CEO, The Dimock Center (Attorney General
appointment)
• Gina Armstrong, Director of Public Health, City of Pittsfield (MMA appointment)
• Jason Ball, Officer, Framingham Police (MMA Appointment)
• Matilde Castiel, MD, Commissioner of Health and Human Services, City of Worcester (MMA
Appointment)
• Maureen Cavanagh, President, Magnolia New Beginnings (Appointment of House Minority Leader
Bradley Jones, Jr.)
• Damon Chaplin, Director of Public Health, City of New Bedford (MMA appointment)
• Gabriel Dean, Public Health Social Worker, Town of Brookline (MMA appointment)
• Denise Garlick, House Representative, (Appointment of House Speaker Ronald Mariano)
• Lindsay Hackett, Deputy Chief Administrative & Financial Officer, City of Springfield (MMA
appointment)
• Suzie Hauptmann, Director of Human Services, Town of Falmouth (MMA appointment)
• Brendan Little, Former Policy Director, Office of Recovery Services, City of Boston, Person in Recovery
(Governor appointment)
• John McGahan, President/CEO, Gavin Foundation (Governor appointment)
• Jeffrey Olmstead, Amherst Fire Department, Town of Amherst (MMA appointment)
• Joanne Peterson, Executive Director, Learn 2 Cope (Attorney General appointment)
• David Rosenbloom, PhD, Professor, Boston University School of Public Health (Appointment of Senate
President Karen E. Spilka)
• John Rosenthal, Founder, Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (PAARI) (Appointment of
Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr)
• Elsie Taveras, MD, MPH, Chief Community Health Equity Officer, Executive Director of the Kraft
Center for Community Health, Mass General Brigham (Governor Appointment)
• Jennifer Tracey, Director, Office of Recovery Services, City of Boston (MMA appointment)
• LaToya Whiteside, Staff Attorney, Prisoners’ Legal Services (Attorney General appointment)
Council Staff
• Gabriel Cohen, Program Planning and Implementation Manager, Executive Office of Health and Human
Services
• Joshua Cuddy, Senior Manager of Strategy, Executive Office of Health and Human Services.
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Summary of Activities of the Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund Advisory Council for 2022
January 5th 2022
Summary: Updates on ongoing settlements, Trust Fund spending principles, and discussion on
services for incarcerated and post-incarcerated individuals
In addition to receiving an update on ongoing litigation led by the Office of the Attorney General, ,
Council members discussed principles for spending Trust Fund dollars, proposed services which the
Fund might support, the initial four-proposals discussed at the Council’s last meeting in September,
services for incarcerated and post-incarcerated individuals including the Behavioral Health Supports for
Justice Involved Individuals (BH-JI) grant.
March 23rd, 2022
Summary: Finalizing Council’s guiding principles, updates on ongoing settlements, discussion of
strategic planning efforts, and an overview on peer grief counseling for people affected by a death from
substance use
The Council finalized the revised principles for the Fund in addition to discussing proposed
programming the Fund could support. Members discussed plan to onboard a strategic planning vendor
to support the development of a strategic plan for initial Fund disbursement. The Council was joined by
Franklin Cook and Glen Lord, Co-directors of Support After a Death by Overdose (SADOD), who
presented on SADOD’s work to increase the capacity and effectiveness of peer grief counseling for
people affected by a death from substance use.
June 28th, 2022
Summary: Discussion of anticipated settlement funds, ORRF revenue and expenditure overview, an
overview of strategic planning efforts, review of a proposed student loan forgiveness initiative, and an
overview on current criminal justice focused interventions.
The Council receiving an update on ongoing litigation led by the Office of the Attorney General, an
discussion on currently approved funding initiatives, grouped into four distinct themes: expansion of
harm reduction services; increased access to methadone; strengthening supportive housing programs;
and case management and support through multi-disciplinary outreach teams. In addition, the council
voted to adopt the proposed recommendation to provide ORRF funds towards student loan forgiveness
programming for direct-care staff employed to provide substance-use disorder treatment programming.
Members discussed the proposed planning to contract with a vendor to support strategic planning
efforts and timeline for a strategic funding plan. The Council was joined by Danna Mauch, President of
Massachusetts Association for Mental Health, and Peter Koutojian, Middlesex Sheriff, who provided a
presentation on the current impact of the Middlesex Restoration Center.