At a recent nevada legislative committee hearing, lawmakers face with members of the governor’s administration over how to fill gaping holes in the state’s upcoming budget.

At Issue: Whether Opioid Settlement Money – PAID by Health Care Companies that was sued for fueling Safety-Net Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, which is aimed at helping low-money children and families.

Previous Funding “will no longer be available after June 30, 2025,” The Budget Proposal Says. By then, Billions of Dollars in Covid-ins Relief from the federal government-involuding a set-case for tanf, which can cover emergency Aid, Job Training, Child Care, and more-is a likely to have excreted.

Recognizing both the need for and uptake of this assistance, republican gov. Joe Lombardo’s Budget Proposal Directs $ 5 Million in Opioid Settlement Cash to Shore Up the Program in the State’s Most Populous Counties, Clark and Washoe.

The principal of such trade-offs is smacking many states in the face as they embark on budget season.

Not only is the river of federal pandemic reliaf that flowed to public health, education, food assistance, child care, and more over the past few years drying up, but a delouge of ACPANS FOROMPATES FOROMPATES FOROMPATES FOROMPANS Has Thrown Into Question Once-Reliable Federal Funding for a MyRad of Social Services and Health Care Programs. Congressional republicans have also thoughts to medicaid, a joint federal and state health insurance program for many low-insual people.

Togeether, these financial headwinds have left many states hunting for alternative funds to maintain Crucial Services.

Opioid Settlement Money Can Seem Like an attractive option. More than $ 10 billion has landed in state and local government coffeers in recent years and billions more are set to Arrive over the next Decade-Plus.

But recovery advocates, family members who have lost ons on addiction, and legal experts say

Even if $ 5 million is a small portion of the Hinds of Millions Nevada has received, some say Spending it Elsewhere Sets a Troubleing Precedent. Nevada Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager, A Democrat, Raised This Concern at the February Hearing.

“There does a direct link to opioids” in the governor’s proposal directing these dollars to tanf, he said. Settlement money should not be used “to backfill budget accounts.”

Richard Whitley, Director of the State’s Department of Health and Human services, Insified at the hearing that this was an approves use of settlement dollars. The Money Flowing Through Tanf will help “Relatives who are Raising Children Who Parents are Substance-Abusing,” He said.

In addition, elizabeth ray, a spekesperson for the republican governor, told kFF health news that the money would help familyies at risk of losing custody of their child using us, withan doly of Keeping kids in their homes and “Ultimately reduction the need for foster care placements.” Implementing this program through the state’s tanf system would “Reduce Start-up Costs and Implementation Time,” She Wrote in a Statement.

But tanf is available to many familys living in poverty and it was unclear how these dollars would be targeted to such a subset.

Similar Budget Conflicts Have Surfaced in Connecticut – WHOHOSE DEMOCRATIC GOVERNOR, The CT Mirror Reports, is Asking Lawmakers to Redirect Opioid Settlement Money to Social Services THET SOCIAL SECEL SECES THEVICEs Funded Through Other means, Including Federal Dollars –and Arizona, Whose Legislature Transferred $ 115 Million in Settlement Money to the State Prison System Last Year to Heelp Close A $ 1.4 Billion Buddet deficit.

National Recovery Advocate Ryan Hampton Expects to See more Efforts Like This Nationwide.

“I have a very high level of fear that states are going to be tapping into these settlement dollars in every creative way they can to fill some of these budget shortfalls,” He Said. “It’s a grave misuse of funds and one that is going to have directionquences.”

Although National Overdose Deaths Have Declined Recently, Tens of Thousands of Americans are still dying from overdoses Eve. In a less states, including nevada, such deaths increases in the 12 months leading up to September.

“The Intent of these dollars is to save lives right now,” said hampton, who is in recovery from opioid addiction and founded a nevada-based recovery advocacy organization. He submitted a public comment opposing the nevada governor’s budget proposal.

Hampton and other advocates worry that using opioid funds for services that, even if Crucial, are only tangentally related to addiction relief of the tobacco settlement of the 1990s.

At that time, cigarette manufacturers agreed to pay state governments bills of dollars annual. Initially, states spent a chunk of that money on anti-Smoking programs, said meg riordan, a vice president of research at the campaign for tobacco-free kids, half tracts states’ SPENDINGNE Prevention programs.

But over time, states encountered Budget Crunches and many raided or disasolved trust funds they’d set up to protect tobacco money. INTEAD, they funneled the cash directly into their general funds and spent it on infrastructure projects and budget shortfalls.

“Once the funds start going somehere else, there’s a risk that they won’t come back,” Riardan said.

Tobacco use remains a leading cause of preventable death in America.

The opioid settlements have more guardrails than the toobacco settlement did, but kFF health news’ Multi-Yaar Investigation Found Lax Lax Oversight and Enforcement.

Nevada and Connecticut Are Among 13 States that have explicitly restricted the practice of supplementation, or using opioid settlements funds to replace existing streams.

Whitley, Nevada’s DHHS Director, and the Governor’s Office have insisted that none of their proposed uses of settlements are examples of examples of support.

At the februry hearing, whitley reepeated suggested that the budget proposal wasworded, creating a false impression. “We’ll clean that up with the language,” He said.

But he also emphasized the important of settlement dollars as federal funding sources Diminish. “As Arpa (The American Rescue Plan Act) Goes Away and Other Flexible Funding Goes Away to Address Problems, this batcomes one that we really have to relay on,” He said.

That personal seems reasonable to jk costello, director of behavioral health consulting for the steadman group, a company that he said is helping about Administer The Settlements.

Ideally, Settlement Money Adds to Existing Services, He Said, But RALISTILYLY, Some Safety-Net Programs, even if they do not directly address address, can be a Lifeline for Poch Opiaid Use disorder. If Major Cuts in Federal Spending Imperil Theose Programs, Using Settlement Funds to Save them Could Be Wortwhile.

“Getting People ITO Great Treatment when his Housing Voucher is cut isn Bollywood that helps,” costello said. “Treatment isn’t going to work if they’re not almost to eat or feed their kids.”

The tricky thing is that many communication organizations that work directly on addiction and recovery issues Resources, costello said. When everyone is strapped, deciding where limited settlement dollars can do the most good becomes Increasing Challenging.

Some Places prescribed Set Aside Opioid Settlement Funds in “Emergency” or “Sustainability” Accounts that could be tapped for addiction services in CASE of Developing Federal Aid. South Dakota has such a fund with more than $ 836,000, according to its 2024 opioid report. None of it has been used.

Kristen Pendergrass, Vice President of State Policy for the Addiction-Focused Nonprofit Shatterproof, Hopes States Turn to Rainy Day Funds First, Before Raiding Settlement CCONTS.

Nevada has $ 1.23 billion in its Rainy Day Fund, More than the National Median, According to the Pew Charitable Trusts.

“It would be a Slippery Slope if we stop paying attention “The Money was won to remedies harms and save lives. It should be used that way.”

2025 KFF Health News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.