Across the United States, the opioid epidemic has devastated communities as opioid-related deaths have skyrocketed. According to data from the National Vital Statistics System and the CDC Wonder Database, the opioid death rate rose by 2,473 percent between 1979 and 2022.

To hold drug manufacturers and distributors accountable for the rise in fatalities, states and local political subdivisions brought lawsuits against major pharmaceutical distributors, manufacturers and pharmacy chains, reaching settlements that total nearly $50 billion to date.

The National Opioids Settlement and other settlement agreements have created a sense of hope for families and communities affected by the opioid crisis and provided a profound opportunity for states across the nation to begin to repair the damage the epidemic has wrought.

On Aug. 5-6, the University of Notre Dame will convene A Pathway to Hope: Summit on the National Opioids Settlement to bring together elected officials, academic researchers and other federal, state and nonprofit organization leaders from across the country to discuss and develop evidence-based strategies to most effectively distribute the opioid lawsuit settlement funds. The summit’s presentations will focus on framing the overall opioid crisis, its impact on communities and families, and potential solutions backed by evidence. The goal is to find ways to maximize the funds’ impact on the families and communities affected by the opioid crisis.

Led by Notre Dame’s Poverty Initiative, the summit will explore how evidence-based practices can inform decisions and ensure that settlement funds best help the victims.

“A primary goal of the Poverty Initiative, which launched last fall, is to bring faculty together with policymakers, philanthropists and providers to discover new pathways to break the cycle of poverty,” said economics professor Jim Sullivan, who also serves as the director of the Poverty Initiative and the Wilson Sheehan Lab for Economic Opportunities.

“The Pathway to Hope Summit embodies that mission as the University will convene some of the nation’s leading experts to find solutions to the opioid crisis that has afflicted families all across this country.”

Sullivan and his team expect one unique outcome of the summit to be a co-created research agenda led by Notre Dame faculty to work with people on the frontlines to ensure the approaches are accurate, scalable and effective.

The Pathway to Hope Summit is an invitation-only event. More information is available at pathwaytohope.nd.edu.

Contact: Sue Ryan, Executive Director of Media Relations, sue.ryan@nd.edu; 269-377-5983
Tracy DeStazio, Associate Director of Media Relations, tdestazi@nd.edu; 269-769-8804
Brandi Wampler, Associate Director of Media Relations, brandiwampler@nd.edu; 574-248-0428

Originally published by Notre Dame News at news.nd.edu on July 19, 2024.