Attorney General Russell Coleman announced the appointment and re-appointment of five members of the Kentucky Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission. The Commission is the mechanism designed by the Kentucky General Assembly to distribute the Commonwealth’s share of nearly $900 million recovered in opioid settlements.
The Commission is comprised of nine voting and two non-voting members including stakeholders from the prevention and treatment community, law enforcement and victims of the drug crisis.
The Attorney General announced the following appointments:
• Jason Roop, Ph.D., of Campbellsville, appointed by the Attorney General to represent victims of the opioid crisis. Dr. Roop is an Assistant Professor of Business and Theology at Campbellsville University and was first appointed in June 2022. His new term will expire in 2026;
• Van Ingram, of Frankfort, appointed by the Attorney General to represent the drug treatment and prevention community. Ingram is Executive Director for the Kentucky Office of Drug Control Policy and was first appointed in 2022. His new term will expire in 2026;
• Patricia Freeman, of Lexington, appointed by the University of Kentucky from the HEALing Communities study team. Dr. Freeman is a Professor in the University of Kentucky’s College of Pharmacy and was first appointed in July 2023. Her new term will expire in 2026;
• State Representative Chris Fugate, of Chavies, appointed by Speaker of the House David Osborne as a non-voting member; and
• Karen Kelly, Chief of Staff to U.S. Representative Hal Rogers (KY-05), of Somerset, appointed by President of the Senate Robert Stivers as a non-voting member.
Last month, Attorney General Coleman announced the commission awarded 51 organizations across Kentucky over $12 million in grants which will serve to improve treatment, prevention and enforcement efforts across Kentucky.
In addition to these appointments, the Commission’s membership includes;
• Chris Evans, of Louisville, Commission Executive Director;
• Mark Metcalf, of Lancaster, Kentucky State Treasurer;
• Karen Butcher, of Georgetown, representing victims of the opioid crisis;
• Eric Friedlander, of Louisville, Secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services;
• Von Purdy, of Louisville, Vice President for Advancement and Community Engagement at Simmons College; and
• Darren “Foot” Allen, of Mount Vernon, representing the law enforcement community.
Office of the Attorney General