It's money intended for drug treatment, prevention and recovery. But Flint's mayor defends buying ambulances because some emergency calls 'involve overdoses.'
Less than a quarter of the money Michigan’s state government has received to fight the opioid crisis has been spent, more than a year after the funds began flowing into state coffers.
Advocates slam ‘abysmal’ transparency surrounding opiods settlement in Michigan. Unlike many other states, Michigan set up few controls over how cities, counties spend their 50% share of the money.
Citizens struggle to track how states are using all the money health care executives paid for their get-out-of-jail cards after they killed or addicted millions.
Spending the money effectively and equitably is a tall order for state and local governments, and a lack of transparency in the process is already leading to fears of misuse.