North Carolina will apply for $25 million in federal grants to combat the opioid crisis.
Governor Roy Cooper signed Executive Order 48, which allows the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services to seek federal funding for the opioid epidemic.
NC DHHS will ask for $22 million for prevention services, medication-assisted treatment and recovery support. This includes purchasing more naloxone, an overdose-reversal drug.
The state anticipates these funds will serve at least 5,000 North Carolinians.
An additional $3 million would go towards tracking and reporting overdose-related data.
In a statement, NC DHHS Secretary Mandy Cohen says these grants are important steps in fighting the opioid crisis, but only part of the solution. She called for sustainable funding to close the coverage gap and increased access to affordable health insurance.
The grants are part of the state's Opioid Action Plan implemented in 2017.