CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Jonathan Board was named Thursday as executive director of the West Virginia First Foundation, which will distribute the majority of the state’s more than $1 billion in opioid settlements.

Board was elected last year to the foundation’s board of directors representing counties in northcentral West Virginia. He will relinquish that role and plans to step down from leadership roles with the Mon Health System and Vandalia Health.

West Virginia has by far the nation’s highest drug overdose death rate.

“This is a vitally important day, but this day has very little to do with one individual or even a group of individuals,” Board said at a news conference, where he was introduced by state Attorney General Patrick Morrisey. “Today is about the people of the state of West Virginia. We have a lot of work to do.”

The private foundation will distribute just under three-quarters of the settlement money won by the state in lawsuits against opioid manufacturers and distributors. About one-fourth will go directly to local communities and 3% will remain in trust.

All funds must be used to abate the opioid crisis, like evidence-based addiction treatment, recovery and prevention programs, or supporting law enforcement efforts to curtail distribution.

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“There’s some things that we can tackle immediately,” Board said. “I would like to come alongside and assist, whether it be a needs assessment or some other tool that we can put into the hands of experts and allow them to be experts and start solving real problems as fast as we can.”

During a meeting of the West Virginia First Foundation directly after the announcement, the board accepted Board’s resignation so he can assume the executive director role. It will be up to local leadership in his region to work with the attorney general’s office to find a replacement.

“It’s a huge relief, not only that we have an executive director, but that we have Jonathan Board as an executive director,” board Chair Matt Harvey said. Harvey said the First Foundation personnel committee met with a number of candidates and were most impressed by his qualifications.

“We all came away from those interviews knowing that Jonathan Board is the right person at the right time to lead us and take up the fight,” Harvey said.

At the meeting, Board said he has years of experience working in health policy and began working around five years ago setting up foundations to support the state of West Virginia’s response to the opioid crisis.

Board’s salary wasn’t disclosed because his employment agreement was still being completed.

“I trust Jonathan,” Harvey said. “I trust his judgment. I know where his heart is. I know that’s to serve the citizens of West Virginia, and he brings all the skills necessary to put that together and lead us.”

The original choice as the foundation’s executive director couldn’t reach an agreement. Morrisey said Board wasn’t among the initial applicants. But after Board applied for the position when applications opened back up, “we realized we had a jewel right in front of our eyes,” Morrisey said.

Board was a candidate for a state Senate seat as a Republican this year but has suspended his campaign to focus on the foundation. That decision “was important for me,” Morrisey said.

“I want to make sure we have a full time (executive director) and not someone who’s going to be torn away by any politics,” he said.

The state began issuing the first opioid lawsuit settlement checks in December. The Kanawha County Commission said it received a $2.9 million check, and the Mercer County Commission received $1.9 million.

Morrisey has said his office and the state auditor’s office have formed a partnership to ensure that the settlement funds are used properly. All the money must be used to abate the opioid crisis through efforts such as addiction treatment, recovery and prevention programs, or supporting law enforcement in anti-drug measures.

The state is receiving money from each of its settlement agreements on a staggered schedule, with annual payments coming until at least 2036. The West Virginia First Foundation alone is expected to receive around $367 million over the next five years.

Over the past four years, drug manufacturers, distribution companies, pharmacies and other companies have reached settlements totaling more than $50 billion with governments. While the biggest amounts are national in scope, West Virginia has been aggressive in bringing its own lawsuits and reaching more than a dozen settlements.

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