Carbon County has awarded $275,118 in opioid grants to four projects that aim to help combat the opioid epidemic gripping the nation.

On Thursday, the board of commissioners awarded funds to the county coroner, Carbon-Monroe-Pike Drug & Alcohol and Synchronicity Recovery Foundation Ltd. for use in various programs regarding opiates.

The county coroner received $85,334 to purchase a MultiSTAT analyzer for postmortem forensic drug testing. The analyzer will help the coroner determine how many overdose or drug-related deaths are opiate related.

Carbon-Monroe-Pike Drug & Alcohol received $91,305 for community engagement recovery housing, transportation and promotional awareness initiatives in the community; as well as $73,479 to be used on prevention case management at Panther Valley and Lehighton schools.

Synchronicity received $25,000 to use for peer recovery support services.

Commissioners Chairman Mike Sofranko noted that the grants are one-year grants.

Carbon County has received approximately $1 million so far of a $4.5 million award from an opioid settlement. Those payments will take place over 18 years.

Commissioner Rocky Ahner said that these grants, as well as two advertising campaigns and upcoming grants the county will be awarding, will exhaust approximately $941,000, which will then allow Carbon County to receive its next $560,000 installment.

He pointed out that the county has to use this money in a timely manner or face losing some of the next installment.

“We’re trying to get it out to every avenue,” he said, noting that it has been a challenge because there are several requirements for projects that must be met, including that the funds must be used for opiate-related projects.

Sofranko said that the county has been discussing many ideas, and felt these grants were a good starting point to get the most money out to the community to try to combat the issue.

Grant applications are available on a continuous basis, the commissioners reported, urging schools, municipalities and groups to reach out and apply for funds for a program or project regarding opiates.

“The three commissioners concern is to get opioid money out into the community where it is desperately needed, because the communities have really suffered,” Sofranko said. “That’s what the settlement is about.”

To obtain information on the grant application, the board said to contact Eloise Ahner in the commissioners’ office at 570-325-3611.