Ferguson highlights opioid settlements, calls Western State performance unacceptable and pledges hands-on engagement

Attorney General Ferguson told an editorial board his office pursued aggressive litigation against opioid manufacturers and recovered what he described as roughly $1.3 billion for treatment and related responses; he said he limited how settlement funds could be used so they are directed to opioid-related work.

Asked about Western State hospital, Ferguson said the facility is not meeting obligations and described it as "failing." He said he has considered working on-site at Western State for a week to understand operations firsthand and that such direct engagement would be part of a gubernatorial approach to fix institutional culture and performance.

On homelessness, Ferguson said many state investments have been made (a figure of about $2.4 billion was cited by the board) and that the state must execute plans to create more housing supply and cut pipelines into homelessness from prison and foster-care exits via targeted interventions and reintegration services.

Ferguson said he is open to discussing adjustments to civil-commitment thresholds but cautioned about legal complexities and the need to balance parental rights and child safety in foster-care and child-removal decisions. He said his office's lawyers handle child-welfare matters daily and would review specific bills proposing change.

Ferguson emphasized both litigation and targeted investments as policy tools: litigation to hold corporations accountable and recover funds, and sustained, cabinet-level engagement and execution to deliver housing and behavioral-health services.