Lt. Gov. Bethany Hall-Long and Attorney General Kathy Jennings to hold community listening sessions on the opioid crisis in all three counties.
The listening sessions led by the Delaware Prescription Opioid Settlement Distribution Commission aim to gather feedback on the opioid epidemic’s challenges, resources and support.
The commission - co-chaired by Lt. Gov. Hall-Long and Attorney General Jennings - is a subcommittee of the Delaware Behavioral Health Consortium.
The commission awards opioid abatement and remediation grants to treat, prevent, and reduce opioid use disorder and misuse of opioids.
Prescription Opioid Settlement Distribution Commission executive director Susan Holloway explains the commission’s objective.
"Making sure that the crisis that has had a huge, huge toll on Delaware that we're able to put measures in place to stem the curb, and then hopefully reduce to a point where this crisis will be behind us,” said Holloway. “So again our major function is making sure that the monies are used in a way that's going to benefit Delawareans."
Hall-Long says they hope to get informed feedback and personal experiences during the sessions.
"Somewhere tonight there's a family with an empty chair at their kitchen table. Parents who unfortunately are visiting a grave site, and we know that we have to really expend the opioid funds wisely. And so we get to hear from families from organizations, from leaders, individuals their experiences," said Hall-Long.
The first meeting is Tuesday night at Del Tech’s Stanton Campus in Newark at 6 pm. There’s also a meeting Thursday night at Del Tech’s Owens Campus in Georgetown at 6 pm.
A third meeting will be at Del Tech’s Terry Campus in Dover next Monday at 6 pm.
