Reducing Overdose Disparities through Equitable Distribution of Funding & Resources

Marianne Gibson is part of the inaugural cohort of the Addiction Policy Scholars Program.

Overdose deaths for Black Marylanders increased by about 74%between 2017-2021, while decreasing by 5% for white Marylanders. To address these disparities, Maryland’s Racial Disparities in Overdose Taskforce was convened in 2021 to identify policy and programmatic recommendations to immediately reduce deaths among Black Marylanders. 

Marianne Gibson’s project operationalized a recommendation from the task force by partnering with the Maryland Office on Overdose Response (formerly Opioid Operational Command Center) to assess and reform how state general funds were distributed to focus on reducing overdose deaths among Black Marylanders.

View the poster here.