Communities across the country are receiving funding through national opioid settlement agreements. These funds are intended to address the harms caused by the opioid epidemic through prevention, treatment, recovery, and harm reduction. As municipalities begin deciding how to spend opioid settlement funds, many states encourage or require communities to gather public input before decisions are made.
Opioid settlement community engagement plays a critical role in helping municipalities make informed, transparent decisions about how these funds are used. Crescendo helps municipalities and regional coalitions design and facilitate engagement processes, including listening sessions and community surveys. These efforts allow residents, service providers, and people with lived experience to share their perspectives on how opioid use disorder affects their community and what strategies should be prioritized.
For municipal leaders navigating how municipalities should use opioid settlement funds, community engagement provides a transparent way to identify gaps in services, understand community priorities, and guide responsible investment of settlement funding.
Who This Is For
Crescendo supports communities seeking structured community input on opioid settlement funding, including:
- Municipal governments receiving opioid settlement funds
- Regional collaborations pooling settlement funding across multiple towns
- Public health departments supporting local opioid response efforts
- Community coalitions and prevention partnerships
- Municipal leaders seeking transparent and documented community engagement
For information on your state’s participation status and relevant agreements, see: State Participation Status – National Opioids Settlement
For additional guidance on responsible use of settlement funding, see:
Principles for the Use of Funds From the Opioid Litigation and the List of Opioid Remediation Uses.
Our Approach
Crescendo facilitates structured community engagement processes that help municipalities gather meaningful input and translate it into actionable insights.
- Facilitated Community Listening Sessions
Crescendo designs and facilitates structured listening sessions where residents, service providers, and community leaders can share their perspectives on the impact of opioid use disorder and the most pressing needs in their community. - Broad Community Input
In addition to listening sessions, Crescendo uses complementary engagement tools to ensure that people who cannot attend meetings still have an opportunity to share their perspectives. - Focus on Community Conditions and Service Gaps
Engagement discussions are designed to surface gaps in prevention, treatment, recovery supports, and harm reduction services, as well as barriers that prevent residents from accessing care. - Alignment with Opioid Settlement Priorities
Community input is organized around the strategic priorities commonly included in opioid settlement agreements, helping municipalities connect community perspectives with allowable funding uses. - Clear Themes and Community Priorities
Crescendo synthesizes community input to identify key themes and highlight the needs that community members believe should be prioritized. - Actionable Findings for Municipal Leaders
Findings are summarized in a clear report that municipal leaders and community partners can use to guide decisions about how opioid settlement funds will be invested.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why conduct community engagement for opioid settlement funds?
Many municipalities seek community input when determining how to spend opioid settlement funds. Listening sessions and community surveys help identify gaps in treatment, recovery supports, prevention, and harm reduction services so that funding decisions reflect real community needs.
Who should participate in opioid settlement listening sessions?
Communities often invite residents, service providers, recovery organizations, public health professionals, and people with lived experience of substance use disorder to share their perspectives.
What topics are typically discussed during opioid settlement listening sessions?
Participants are typically asked about the impact of opioid use disorder in their community, gaps in services, barriers to care, and strategies that could help address prevention, treatment, recovery, and harm reduction.
How are the results used?
Findings from listening sessions and surveys are summarized in a report that helps municipal leaders and community partners prioritize strategies and guide decisions about how opioid settlement funding will be used.
For communities looking to build on engagement findings, Crescendo also provides Community Needs Assessments and strategic planning support to help turn community input into clear priorities and implementation plans.