Opioid Abatement Frequently Asked Questions

Texas has participated in settlement agreements with different companies including pharmacies, opioid manufacturers, pharmaceutical companies, etc., to resolve legal claims against them for their role in the opioid crisis. The funds will be received in various amounts over a period of 18 years dependent on the settlement agreement with each company. Additionally, these funds are intended to be used to address opioid-related harms in the community.

Learn more about the opioid settlement agreements.

The Opioid Abatement Account 5189 is an account in general revenue consisting primarily of amounts from statewide opioid settlement agreements. Funds in the account may be appropriated through the legislative process only to a state agency to address opioid-related prevention and treatment programs.

The Opioid Abatement Trust Fund is held by the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company:

• Portions are directly allocated to political subdivisions;
• Texas Access to Justice Foundation received a one-time direct allocation per statute;
• Portions are directly allocated for hospital districts;
• The remainder is distributed by the Council, with annual distribution goals of 75 percent divided among the Texas Health and Human Services regional healthcare partnership areas and 25 percent to select programs, with a small percentage for administration.

Learn more about the flow of opioid settlement funds.

The Texas Opioid Abatement Fund Council was formed to ensure that money recovered through the joint efforts of the state and its political subdivisions through a statewide opioid settlement agreement is allocated fairly and spent to remediate the opioid crisis using efficient, cost-effective methods.

Learn more about the Council and its work.

OAFC program staff hold quarterly roundtables virtually geared toward community-based organizations, local government entities, health care providers, law enforcement, and other entities seeking opportunities to address the opioid epidemic across the state. Individuals can ask questions and provide feedback through surveys. Learn more about OAFC’s outreach efforts.

Public comment on the Council's work is solicited on an ongoing basis. For Council meetings, if public comment is available, the agenda and instructions to register will be on the meeting notice posted on the Texas Register at least seven days before the meeting date.

Public comment will also be solicited during the Council's rule making process. Rules for public comment will also be posted on the Texas Register. The comment period is typically 30 days after publication.

For general questions or comments, please email us.

To stay up to date on the work of the Council, sign up for email notifications. The OAFC regularly shares information on public meetings, updates on grant opportunities, and a monthly newsletter

Exhibit E — List of Opioid Remediation Uses is a settlement document that contains a non-exhaustive list of Opioid Remediation Strategies that can guide states and political subdivisions in the spending of settlement funds.

The Council works to set funding priorities for grants, including one or more evidence-based opioid abatement strategies. Learn more about our past, current, and upcoming grant opportunities.

Political subdivisions may use their discretion to spend their allocated share of the funds, as long as the funds are used to address opioid-related harms in their communities and abide by state and federal laws. See Texas Government Code § 403.506(c)(1). Learn more about political subdivision disbursements.

Texas Government Code, Chapter 552, gives you the right to access government records. All government information is presumed to be available to the public, although exceptions may apply to the disclosure of some information. Please include enough description and detail about the information to enable us to accurately identify and locate the information requested. For more information on submitting a request, including how to submit online or by email, FAX, mail or in person, please visit our Open Records webpage.