States and cities are getting more than $55 billion from opioid settlements. This money is supposed to help our communities heal from the opioid crisis.
From a restorative justice framework, it's also our money because it was won from the harms to our community. For that reason, we deserve to know how it is spent. But this spending is often happening behind closed doors.
To help community members unlock this settlement spending info, the Opioid Policy Institute is partnering with the Data Liberation Project & MuckRock to launch our newest initiative: The Opioid Settlement Data Liberation Project!
Check out our new website!
Wait, what is this?
We've built technical assistance for community members requesting opioid settlement data.
Our goal is to help you unlock spending data by leveraging public-records law. These requests, sometimes called FOIAs (Freedom of Information Act), can help you see spending decisions that are otherwise hidden. With FOIAs, you can ask for these files, and the government has to respond. But the process is confusing. The language is technical. People give up.
That's where we come in.
The Opioid Policy Institute is working with the Data Liberation Project and MuckRock to help people unlock spending with their powerful FOIA tools. And we're making these tools available for free for community members working to unlock opioid settlement data.
For our community, we offer:
- A prebuilt list of agencies to request information from (or add your own with our help!).
- A ready-made, battle-tested template to request opioid settlement-related documents.
- The ability to easily track and reply to requests.
- The ability to receive documents.
- MuckRock technical support if you get stuck.
Why do I have to sign up for something that's free?
To help make this service free for people interested in filing FOIAs related to opioid settlement money, we need to vet people before letting them into this community. Normally the MuckRock tools would cost $40-100/month, but because this is an important topic and Dillion is a cool dude, MuckRock/Data Liberation Project are hooking us up with free access, as long as we stay on topic.
With this application, you'll tell OPI:
- Who you are and how to reach you
- What you want to know about opioid settlement spending, who you want to know about, and why
- Your plan for document fee payments (we only offer free access to the MuckRock platform to file the FOIAs), filing, sorting, analyzing, and publicizing the info you get.
OPI reviews every application. If your request fits the project goals, you'll get invited to a mandatory onboarding call. During the call, you'll get onboarded to the MuckRock FOIA tool, and we'll answer any questions you have.
Join the watchdogs!
Why Trust Us?
Jonathan Stoltman, PhD
Jonathan has worked as a researcher and advocate focusing on opioid addiction treatment and recovery since 2013. He completed his PhD in Lifespan Developmental Psychology from West Virginia University in 2019. Jonathan’s academic work has appeared in leading journals, conferences, and media outlets. He has been working on opioid settlement-related topics since 2020.
Why You Can Trust OPI
The Opioid Policy Institute exists to help communities improve their response to opioid-related death and disease. We provide evidence-based research and analysis that translates complex legal guidance and public health research into practical, usable insights. Our focus is on transparency, accountability, and community healing by increasing access to evidence-based prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery supports.
OPI’s analysis reflects a collaborative, team-based approach. We blend real-world and academic experience to help ensure our work is methodologically sound, grounded in evidence, and attentive to real-world implementation challenges. We focus on asking the right questions, surfacing tradeoffs, and helping communities build robust responses to addiction.
Opioid Policy Institute by Jonathan JK Stoltman, PhD is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
