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CLAYTON • The St. Louis County Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to approve a resolution creating an emergency task force to combat the region's opioid crisis.
The resolution provides emergency funding of $ 1 million for the task force recommendations.
The council would appoint one person from each district to sit on the task force while the county executive could appoint four members, according to a statement. Steve Stenger, county director, said in a statement that he supported "any effort to fight the epidemic of opioids".
The working group would consider how to expand education and prevention programs, improve regional coordination of treatment services and expand drug-assisted therapies.
The council is also interested in whether the county's prescription drug monitoring program is working as intended for the region, said Councilor Mark Harder, R-7th District, who organized a series of public meetings to discuss the crisis .
"This problem affects all political lines, all socio-economic lines, all races," he said. "He does not discriminate who is addicted and who dies of this crisis."
The resolution also encourages the group to look into Morris & Dickson, a Louisiana-based provider that supplies prescription drugs to the health department. The provider is under investigation by the Federal Drug Enforcement Administration for failing to report excessive orders of opioids.
On its website, the company stated that it "is currently improving its stringent policies and procedures for controlled substances and its suspicious order tracking systems." We look forward to working with the DEA on our common goal of eliminating drug diversion. "
Dr. Faisal Khan, St. Louis County Health Director, told council that the county belonged to a group of multi-jurisdictional buyers who had purchased drugs, but not controlled substances, from Morris & Dickson.
ACTION OF THE PORT AUTHORITY
The council also voted 6-1 Tuesday night to approve an order prohibiting board members of the St. Louis County Port Authority from serving on expired terms. Councilor Pat Dolan, D-5th District, issued the only dissenting vote, wondering if the council's action was legal.
As all members of the Harbor Authority were serving expired warrants, the purpose of the transfer is to force Stenger to rename board members who would need the approval of a board that disagreed. with him.
The council also voted 7-0 to allow the Stenger administration to spend $ 1.4 million to design two new county police stations for northern and southern St. Louis County.
The council delayed the vote because it accused the port authority of mismanaging the land acquisition. Councilor Ernie Trakas, R-6th District, said the council would do its "due diligence" to make sure the county got the best price for the properties.
Trakas is chairman of the board's ethics committee, which has planned a series of hearings on the port authority.
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