Cherokee Nation is investing $10 million toward supporting community members with substance use disorder.
Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. and Deputy Chief Bryan Warner gathered with other Cherokee Nation leaders on Monday to sign legislation earmarking funding to build an outpatient substance use disorder facility.
The 10,000-square-foot outpatient center will be located at 82102 Highway 59 in Stilwell, Okla.
“The passage of this legislation represents another important step in our commitment to addressing substance use disorder and expanding access to recovery care for our citizens,” Hoskin said in a press release. “This is a vital step in creating opportunities for healing, strengthening families and building healthier communities for years to come.”
Cherokee Nation was among the first communities in the United States to sue drug manufacturers, distributors, and marketers for their role in flooding the reservation with prescription opioids. The lawsuit, which was settled in 2021 with a $75 million payout to the Cherokee Nation, alleged that in just one year, nearly 800 kilograms of opioids—enough for almost 10 million pills at oxycodone’s highest strength—were distributed within the reservation.
In 2022, Hoskin, Warner and the Council of the Cherokee Nation placed funds from the tribe’s settlements under amendments to the historic Public Health and Wellness Fund Act.
The 2022 amendments to PHWFA established the Behavioral Health Capital Fund, earmarking most of the tribe’s opioid settlement funds for capital projects relating to behavioral health and drug addiction treatment.
The act was amended several times to bring forward additional opioid settlement dollars into the Behavioral Health Capital Fund in 2023 and 2026.
“Substance use disorder impacts so many more people than just the person suffering from it,” Warner said. “The building of this recovery center will be a representation of hope for those struggling with substance use disorder and will provide them the chance to rebuild their lives towards a healthier and brighter future.”
Since the inception of the Behavioral Health Capital Fund, the Hoskin / Warner administration has begun construction on an inpatient addiction treatment center in Tahlequah, as well as outpatient recovery centers in Tahlequah and Vinita.
Those projects are scheduled to be completed in 2027.
