Suffolk County Overhauls Opioid Grant Process After Ethics Concerns and Delays

Suffolk County officials are remaking how they distribute millions in opioid settlement dollars, adopting new transparency measures and holding the first-ever public hearings where nonprofit leaders can directly make their case for funding. The overhaul follows a scathing audit that documented selection irregularities, reimbursement delays, and ethics violations under the previous administration.

The five-member committee overseeing the county's Opioid Settlement Fund heard from three dozen speakers at a July 30 forum, a departure from previous rounds where decisions were made without public input. For advocates like Carol Trottere, whose son Alex died of fentanyl poisoning in 2018, the process carries profound weight.

"It's our blood money from our children and our loved ones," Trottere, founder of the Purple Rock Project, told the committee.

A History of Problems

Suffolk County has received $118 million from pharmaceutical litigation settlements and could collect as much as $264 million over the next two decades. To date, the county has earmarked approximately $57.7 million to 76 programs, though only about 39 percent of that money has actually been disbursed.

A 2025 audit by Comptroller John Kennedy identified significant issues with the fund's early management under former County Executive Steve Bellone. The report found fault with the selection process, lack of public participation, and poor documentation. Kennedy also flagged potential conflicts of interest, noting that Bellone and his former chief of staff Ryan Attard—who chaired the opioid settlement committee—were both later hired at firms that received more than $6 million in settlement funds. Attard agreed to pay a $2,000 fine for ethics violations.

"People in this county have paid a price that no settlement can fully repay," said Lori-Ann Novello, executive director of the Lindenhurst Community Cares Coalition, during the public hearing.

Reimbursement Delays Jeopardized Services

Beyond transparency concerns, nonprofit leaders described a reimbursement system that created cash flow crises for smaller organizations.

Danielle Bruschi, chief executive of New Hope Rising in Westhampton Beach, said her organization received $725,000 over three years in the first funding round, primarily to cover expenses for inpatient residents. But reimbursement delays proved "devastating" for the small nonprofit.

"We decided not to seek additional funds in the second round," Bruschi said in an interview. The organization began a proposal for the current third round but ultimately opted against submitting it based on their prior experience.

Tina Wolf, executive director of Community Action for Social Justice in Hauppauge, described a paperwork burden that required submitting thousands of pages of documentation monthly. While her organization—which provides overdose prevention services and syringe exchange programs—had the infrastructure to handle the requirements, she noted that smaller groups may not.

"Some type of collaboration between larger entities assisting smaller organizations with fiscal reporting could be a potential solution," Wolf suggested.

New Administration, New Approach

County Executive Edward P. Romaine, who took office pledging to increase transparency, has implemented an online dashboard tracking the funds and says artificial intelligence will help examine program effectiveness. Staffing increases are intended to streamline the reimbursement process that plagued earlier rounds.

"We're going to be driven by data and the effectiveness of the various programs," Romaine said in an interview.

The committee plans to announce recipients of the third funding round in September. The county has already increased disbursements significantly—payments rose from $1.9 million in 2023 to $3.4 million in 2024 and $9.1 million in 2025. This year's total is on pace to exceed that, with $7.8 million paid to date.

Declining Deaths, Ongoing Challenges

Suffolk County's overdose deaths have fallen steadily in recent years, from 463 in 2023 to 321 in 2024 and 243 in 2025. Experts attribute the decline to stricter prescription controls, expanded education and prevention efforts, and increased treatment availability funded in part by settlement dollars.

But Sylvia Diaz, the deputy county executive who chairs the opioid settlement committee, cautioned that the crisis requires constant attention. Data from the first two funding rounds will allow for a more "targeted" approach, she said, helping pinpoint communities with the highest overdose rates.

The settlement money comes from lawsuits against pharmaceutical distributors and manufacturers for their role in fueling the opioid epidemic. States and localities nationwide have received billions in similar settlements, though translating those funds into effective programs has proven challenging across the country.

For families like Trottere's, the question is whether the new process will honor the lives lost by preventing future tragedies.

"At a minimum, we owe the families that were affected by this a strategy that prevents future families from bearing the same burden," Novello told the committee.

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