Across rural North Carolina, the opioid epidemic has left a devastating mark — overdose deaths have surged, families have been shattered and communities have struggled to find resources to fight the crisis. More than 4,440 overdose-related deaths were reported across the state in 2023, with rural counties accounting for about 41 percent of the toll.
But a wave of funding from the state’s share of a multibillion-dollar national court settlement with the pharmaceutical companies that abetted the epidemic has offered a lifeline by fueling efforts to expand treatment, recovery and harm reduction programs in the hardest-hit areas.
Read more from NC Health News.