APT Foundation pushes public education in opioid settlement spending

APT Foundation is urging policymakers to pair opioid settlement dollars with public education and outreach as communities decide how to spend the funds. The New Haven provider points to campaign results, treatment access gains, and persistent stigma around medication for opioid use disorder as proof that awareness efforts can help more people reach care. Why it matters: - Opioid settlement funds can do more than pay for treatment beds or emergency response. - APT Foundation argues public education can help people recognize opioid use disorder, trust available care, and know how to get help. - The issue matters in Connecticut and beyond because stigma still keeps many people from medication for opioid use disorder, or MOUD. What happened: - APT Foundation is urging public health leaders and municipal policymakers to direct some opioid settlement funding toward education and outreach. - The New Haven-based provider partnered with Red Rock Branding last summer to launch Let’s Break Barriers to Treatment, Medication for Opioid Use Disorder Works. - The campaign ran from June through September 2025 across Greater New Haven. - The effort used a landing page, an animated video, social media, digital advertising, transit and billboard ads, broadcast media, and email outreach. - APT Foundation and Red Rock Branding also plan another public webinar for municipal leaders and nonprofit partners on Sept. 16, during Recovery Month. - Registration links will be posted on both organizations’ social media accounts. The details: - APT Foundation says its current leadership cut treatment wait times from an average of three weeks to three hours. - The organization has provided evidence-based care for 55 years and has spent more than a decade reducing barriers to treatment. - The campaign targeted adults 18 and older, with additional outreach to younger audiences through social media. - Secondary audiences included local health departments, community-based organizations, advocacy groups, and community leaders. - A post-campaign survey measured awareness and perceptions. - During the campaign, active website users rose 44%. - Instagram reach increased 406%. - TikTok content generated more than 600,000 views. - The survey showed better recognition of overdose severity and more understanding of addiction as a public health issue. - The campaign won two Gold Viddy Awards, Gold and Silver Davey Awards, and was a Shorty Awards finalist in 2025. - APT Foundation serves more than 7,000 people each year across six clinical sites in New Haven County. - The organization offers same-day care through walk-in evaluations six days a week and accepts patients regardless of ability to pay. - APT also works with the Connecticut Department of Corrections and the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services. - The provider says it engages in NIH-supported research and hosts community forums and overdose prevention training. - Red Rock Branding is a New Haven virtual agency focused on strategic marketing and communications. - The agency says it often works with public health organizations on campaigns designed to drive measurable impact. - A National Survey on Drug Use and Health estimate for 2024 says 4.8 million people ages 12 and older in the U.S. are living with opioid use disorder. - Fewer than one in five of those people received no medication at all for opioid use disorder, according to the release. - Methadone is described in the release as the most widely studied form of MOUD, and the release says the treatment is safe, affordable and effective. Between the lines: - The campaign data gives APT Foundation a concrete case for why communications should be considered part of the opioid response. - The emphasis on methadone reflects a broader fight over stigma, since effective treatment can still be underused when communities misunderstand it. - The planned webinar suggests APT Foundation wants settlement dollars to support not only services, but also the public messaging that helps people use those services. - The results also suggest digital and social channels can move awareness quickly when the message is simple and repeated. What’s next: - APT Foundation and Red Rock Branding will host another webinar for municipal leaders and nonprofit partners on Sept. 16. - The organizations say registration information will appear on their social media channels. - As settlement dollars continue flowing, APT Foundation is pushing local leaders to treat outreach as a core part of opioid response planning. The bottom line: - APT Foundation’s message is blunt: treatment works, but communities must also fund the outreach that helps people find it.