Bloomberg Philanthropies has announced a new $150 million investment to tackle the ongoing opioid crisis in the United States, bringing the foundation's total commitment to overdose prevention efforts to $335 million since 2018. The funding was unveiled during the ninth annual Bloomberg American Health Summit held in Baltimore. This latest phase of the initiative will support programs in Kentucky, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Wisconsin, and Washington, with the latter being a new addition to the foundation’s focus list.
The foundation’s efforts originally began in 2018, when Michael Bloomberg started funding state-level prevention programs in Pennsylvania and Michigan. These two states were selected at the time as opioid-related deaths were contributing to a significant decline in national life expectancy. Following years of support, the foundation plans to transition out of direct involvement in Pennsylvania and Michigan, having established independent, sustainable systems in those areas. The initiative now shifts its resources toward states like Washington, which continues to experience high overdose death rates despite recent national improvements.
A primary objective of this funding is to integrate evidence-based treatment for opioid use disorder into high-risk settings, specifically hospital emergency departments and correctional facilities. According to the foundation, individuals recently released from prison and those who have survived a previous overdose are at a statistically higher risk of fatal complications. A 2007 study cited by the organization indicated that formerly incarcerated individuals were 129 times more likely to die from an overdose within two weeks of release compared to the general population. By providing medications such as buprenorphine in jails, prisons, and hospitals, the initiative aims to reach vulnerable populations at the point of greatest need.
The program is also dedicated to expanding access to naloxone, a medication capable of reversing opioid overdoses. Furthermore, the initiative provides guidance to government bodies on how to utilize funds received from legal settlements related to the opioid epidemic, ensuring these resources are directed toward effective treatment and preventative care. Since its inception, the program has achieved significant milestones, including providing medication for opioid use disorder in all New Jersey and Wisconsin prisons. Additionally, over 75% of emergency departments across New Jersey, Michigan, and Pennsylvania have begun offering such treatments, an increase from 28% previously.
The impact of these interventions has been measurable. The foundation reported that in 2024, overdose deaths within its focus states declined at a rate 15 percentage points greater than the national average. Specifically, an earlier annual report noted a 31% reduction in overdose deaths across seven participating states, contrasting with a 27% decline nationally during the same period. Other successful outcomes include the expansion of Medicaid-covered treatment for postpartum parents in Kentucky and increased availability of fentanyl test strips in New Mexico.
Reflecting on the progress, Michael Bloomberg emphasized the urgency of continuing these efforts. "Even one death from an overdose is too many," he stated. "The overdose epidemic continues to be one of the hardest public health crises our nation faces. Now is the time to accelerate this hard-fought progress, expand access to treatment, and save more lives." As the initiative moves forward, the focus remains on ensuring that evidence-based practices, such as medication-assisted treatment, become a standard feature in public health and criminal justice systems across the targeted states.
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