LINCOLN- Two Nebraska governmental entities have been awarded a combined total of nearly $17 million in federal funding to bolster their battle against drug overdoses. The Douglas County Health Department and the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services are among 40 local health departments in the United States to receive the funding, which comes from the CDC's Overdose Date to Action Program.

Douglas County announced on Thursday that its funding, which comes out to around $4.45 million, will be disbursed over a five-year period. The Department of Health and Human Services will receive funding over the same timeframe, but in the amount of $12.4 million. The program's funding is meant to help state's collect more comprehensive and timely data on overdoses, which can be utilized to improve prevention tactics, which should, in turn, reduce deaths and harm.

"This grant will make a lasting impact and provide hope to those affected by substance use disorders," said Lindsay Huse, Douglas County Health Director. This award of funding is actually the second for the state's Department of Health for the same reason, and allowed DHHS to provide coroners with free toxicology testing and provide different amounts of funding to 18 local health departments.

For the full article click HERE