Georgia launches new grant portal ahead of opioid settlement distribution

At a workshop in Atlanta, the state Department of Behavioral Health & Developmental Disabilities outlined the application process for groups to receive grant funding through Georgia's new Opioid Crisis Abatement Trust. (Jess Mador/WABE)

Georgia has established a new trust for distributing the hundreds of millions of dollars headed to the state from the nationwide settlement with opioid drugmakers and distributors.    

Georgia’s overall share of the settlement is pegged at least $638 million over the next 18 years.

The money has already begun flowing into the state. Now, the task of spending it begins.