BUFFALO, N.Y. — The Opioid Settlement Advisory Board is poised to release its recommendations report on November 1.
But there were frustrations with the pace at which the advisory board was moving.
If you asked board member Avi Israel if he was optimistic about a consensus being formed by the deadline, he would have put money on the over.
Despite the heat of the summer, cooler heads prevailed and the board determined how to divide millions of dollars for addiction services.
"[The] beginning was a little rough, we started late," Israel said.
The board was announced back in November 2021 but didn't hold its first meeting until June 2022.
"To the credit of a lot of the folks who are members of the board, we got together, and we vote actually voted on the money a week ago."
Israel couldn't provide details about how the money would be spent but did provide areas where the funds would be allocated towards.
Access to Naloxone, workforce development, transportation, and housing services are among the few areas he could disclose.
"There was not a sense of urgency on the part of the state in the beginning, but I think that got better as we moved along," Israel said.
A sense of urgency is needed, Israel says, because the need for addiction services in WNY, and elsewhere in the state, is increasing.
"There are counties where you cannot get to any treatment because it's not available," Israel said.
Speaking with peer-to-peer mentors and other addiction professionals, the greatest need is for more beds, housing, and transportation.
We asked Israel directly if the recommendations that will be released address those areas.
"Yes," Israel said. "The only thing that is not being addressed right now which I'm a little disappointed, is there needs to be more communication between the Office of Mental Health and OASAS."
One other area that is addressed, which Israel says the recommendations do to an extent, is further addiction services investments in black and brown communities.
"We're not doing enough over there," Israel said. "That's where it is climbing high, I think we're it's about 19% from last year."