Barren County Fiscal Court working to begin distribution of money from federal opioid settlement

GLASGOW, Ky. – The Barren County Fiscal Court is working to decide where hundreds of thousands of dollars will be distributed coming from a federal opioid settlement.

Kentucky Statute 15.291 establishes the Kentucky Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission as an appointed board to distribute funds received by the Commonwealth from settlements with multiple opioid distributing and manufacturing companies.

Checks have been coming in with random amounts at unpredictable times, so the county was advised to hold the funds for a while before distributing. 

The goal of the distribution is to help fund groups, rehabilitation centers and programs that support individuals who have dealt with opioid addiction.

The Kentucky Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission provides an online settlement distribution dashboard, where users can view awards by county here. According to this dashboard, Barren County has received about $458,800 from fiscal year 2025.

Sober living houses, school systems, Bridge Kentucky and other qualifying entities may apply starting in September to request funds. 

Selection will be done in November and funds will go out in December.