Trenton – Following today’s Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee hearing with the Department of Law and Public Safety, Senator Dawn Addiego issued the following statement on the use of potential opioid settlement money:

“New Jersey has been suffering from the devastating effects of the opioid crisis for several years, and the issue has only been exacerbated by the pandemic. It is crucial that any and all opioid settlement money goes back to the people and communities hurt most by the overprescription of opioids. We must learn from the mistakes that were made around the country with the 1998 tobacco settlement. The millions of dollars that have already been received and any additional money that is expected should be solely dedicated to public health initiatives focused on prevention, treatment and recovery.”