New York, Sept. 05, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As the opioid and overdose crisis continues to impact individuals and families across the country, the Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts (FORE) today announced it is awarding new grants totaling $1,000,468 to two nonpartisan organizations to assist state policymakers strengthen prevention, treatment, recovery, and harm reduction programs in their communities. A key element of this new funding is to identify the best mechanisms for deploying opioid settlement funding to address the crisis.
The National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP) is receiving $650,468 to expand its work supporting state policymakers in addressing the opioid and substance use crisis. Through this grant, NASHP will provide technical assistance and support for state leaders in implementing innovative strategies to reduce overdoses and other opioid-related harms, and explore ways to make the most effective use of opioid settlements dollars and other government funding sources to address gaps in access to care.
Health Affairs, the nation’s leading journal of health policy research, is receiving $350,000 to launch a special issue on the opioid and overdose crisis that will be aimed at state and national policy makers and provide the latest insights on innovative evidence-based solutions.
“State policymakers are navigating a challenging policy environment as they make important decisions about how to best allocate a range of available public funds, including through settlements, to connect more people to services and reduce overdoses,” said Karen A. Scott, MD, MPH, President of FORE. “Having access to practical resources, timely research, analysis and policy solutions is key to their success.”
States play a central role in addressing the opioid and overdose crisis since most federal funds to address the crisis are administrated at the individual state level, and state-specific policies can either facilitate or impede access to services. With this FORE grant, NASHP will continue to help state leaders prioritize and make decisions about new funding and best practices to reduce overdoses by connecting more people to services across the continuum of prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery. This new grant builds on previous funding NASHP received from FORE.
Health Affairs will disseminate research that addresses gaps in the current policy and health landscape in its first-ever full thematic issue on the opioid crisis consisting of 18 to 20 peer-reviewed articles, commissioned overviews, and perspectives. The goal is to re-focus public attention on the ongoing crisis, promote additional research into innovative solutions, and inform policy discussions. The issue will examine the impact of responses to the opioid crisis and provide evidence-based recommendations as well as promote work on underrecognized and emerging issues. It will be co-funded by FORE, along with Vital Strategies and additional funders.
About the Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts (FORE)
FORE was founded in 2018 as a private 501(c)(3) national, grant-making foundation focused on addressing the nation’s opioid crisis. FORE is committed to funding a diversity of projects contributing solutions to the crisis at national, state, and community levels. FORE’s mission is to support partners advancing patient-centered, innovative, evidence-based solutions impacting people experiencing opioid use disorder, their families, and their communities. Through convening, grantmaking and developing informational resources, FORE seeks to bring about long-term change. To date, FORE has awarded 106 grants to 92 organizations, totaling $43.3 million. Follow us on X and LinkedIn.
About the National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP)
NASHP is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit, 501(c)(3) forum for policymakers throughout state governments, learning, leading, and implementing innovative solutions to health policy challenges. NASHP provides a unique forum for constructive, nonpartisan work across state executive agency lines and between the executive and legislative branches. As an academy of state officials, NASHP works closely with Medicaid directors and agency staff, as well as staff from other agencies, legislators, and legislative staff, in neutral forums outside their state and away from heated political exchanges.
About Health Affairs
Health Affairs is a leading peer-reviewed journal at the intersection of health, health care, and policy. The journal was founded in 1981 under the aegis of Project HOPE, a global health and humanitarian organization. Health Affairs explores health policy issues of current concern in domestic and international spheres. Its mission is to serve as a high-level, nonpartisan forum to promote analysis and discussion on improving health and health care, and to address such issues as cost, quality, and access. Health Affairs plays a critical role in accelerating the adoption of innovative, evidence-based programs and policies.
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