Health coalition lays out community strategy model to guide Genesee County settlement spending

Kelly Ainsworth, senior program director at the Greater Flint Health Coalition, told the Genesee County opioid settlement steering committee that the coalition's updated community strategy model should guide how settlement dollars are used.

Ainsworth said the model, revised in 2026 after earlier versions in 2018 and 2022, organizes work into pillars including prevention, risk reduction (formerly harm reduction), treatment, behavioral health, recovery and social supports. "This is our community wide strategy model," she said, describing it as a roadmap that identifies who should be engaged in each area and where funds can have the greatest impact.

The presentation was intended to help committee members ask informed questions about who is doing what in the county and where settlement funding would best close gaps. Ainsworth emphasized that the county already hosts many providers and services, which argues for coordinated investments: "You're probably getting more bang for your buck than you realize because they've stretched thin," she said.

Committee members said the strategy model should be used to shape the RFP priorities and scoring. The model's practical aim, Ainsworth said, is to help the committee identify realistic, sustainable investments rather than ad hoc expenditures that might not endure if other funding streams change.