The Georgia Opioid Crisis Abatement Trust is dedicated to eliminating and preventing opioid abuse throughout the state. In 2022, Georgia successfully secured a substantial $638 million from settlements with major pharmaceutical manufacturers, along with an additional $13 million from McKinsey & Company, specifically aimed at combating the opioid epidemic. These funds are allocated to initiatives such as broadening treatment availability, enhancing public education, and supplying the critical overdose-reversal drug, naloxone, also known as Narcan.

Governor Brian Kemp emphasized, “Similar to other states, Georgia’s communities and families have been severely impacted by the opioid crisis, leaving a lasting detrimental effect. These funds will empower us to vigorously combat addiction, fortify community safety, and deliver justice for those wronged by opioid producers and distributors.”

The Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (GDBHDD) reports that over the past 25 years, opioid-related overdoses have claimed more than 650,000 lives, with a staggering 200 percent rise in cases from 2010 to 2020.

Kevin Tanner, State Commissioner for the GDBHDD, said of the settlement, “$479 million of that money will flow through the trust over the next 18 years and out of that, 60 percent will go statewide initiatives, and 40 percent for regional initiatives. We opened that first opportunity for grants last year.”

Apply online for the funds through Wednesday, June 18, 2025.