Opioid settlements: Public engagement, oversight crucial next steps

Given Baltimore’s long-standing problems with drug abuse — including suffering one of the highest overdose death rates of any city in the nation — it is not customary to read about hopeful developments in this arena. Yet, in recent weeks, there has been reason for at least some degree of optimism. Lawsuits filed against manufacturers and distributors of opioids, the chief culprit in these untimely city deaths, have one by one resulted in substantial financial settlements.