2024 - 1 RESOLUTION - Authorizing Kroger Opioid Settlement & Approving the Second Supplemental Agreement for Additional Funds - 7-15-24

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FILED LEE COUNTY NC PAMELA G. BRITT REGISTER OF DEEDS FILED Aug .26, 2024 AT 09:10:35 am BOOK 00004 START PAGE 0047 END PAGE 0048 INSTRUMENT # 05343 EXCISE TAX (None) RESOLUTION BY THE COUNTY OF LEE AUTHORIZING EXECUTION OF KROGER OPIOID SETTLEMENT AND APPROVING THE SECOND SUPPLEMENTAL AGREEMENT FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDS WHEREAS,the opioid overdose epidemic has taken the lives of more than 37,000 North Carolinians since 2000; and WHEREAS,the COVID-19 pandemic has compounded the opioid overdose crisis, increasing levels of drug misuse, addiction, and overdose death; and WHEREAS,the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates the total economic burden of prescription opioid misuse alone in the United States is $78.5 billion a year, including the costs of healthcare, lost productivity, addiction treatment, and criminal justice involvement; and WHEREAS, according to the North Carolina Opioid Settlements CORE-NC Dashboard, found at htti)s://ncoDioidsettlement.or2/data-dashboards/opioid-indicators/, it is estimated that in 2021, the overdose death rate in Lee County was 58 out of 100,000 people, emergency department visits rate for overdose in 2021 was 161 out of 100,000 in 2022, and the overdose death from illicit drug involvement rate in 2021 was 78 out of 100 overdose deaths; and WHEREAS, certain counties and municipalities in North Carolina joined with thousands of local governments across the country to file lawsuits against opioid manufacturers, pharmaceutical distribution companies, and chain drug stores to hold those companies accountable for their misconduct; and WHEREAS, a settlement has been reached in litigation against the Kroger Co. ("Kroger") as well as its subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, and directors named in the Kroger Settlement; and WHEREAS, representatives of local North Carolina governments, the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners, and the North Carolina Department of Justice have negotiated and prepared a Second Supplemental Agreement for Additional Funds from Additional Settlement of Opioid Litigation (SAAF-2) to provide for the equitable distribution of the proceeds of these settlements; and WHEREAS, by joining the settlements and approving the SAAF-2, the state and local governments maximize North Carolina's share of opioid settlement funds to ensure the needed resources reach communities, as quickly, effectively, and directly as possible; and WHEREAS, it is advantageous to all North Carolinians for local governments, including Lee County and its residents, to sign onto the settlements and SAAF-2 and demonstrate solidarity in response to the opioid overdose crisis, and to maximize the share of opioid settlement funds received both in the state and this county to help abate the harm; and WHEREAS, the SAAF-2 directs substantial resources over multiple years to local governments on the front lines of the opioid overdose epidemic while ensuring that these resources are used in an effective way to address the crisis;