Methods: The University of Kentucky College of Public Health’s RITA Hub (Rapid Implementation and Technical Assistance) is providing local governments and state agencies with TA and tools to inform and implement opioid settlement spending, with special focus on increasing access to opioid overdose prevention and opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment evidence-based practices among incarcerated populations. Unlike some states that have directly invested in TA, in KY, the opioid abatement TA contract is privately funded by Vital Strategies. The RITA Hub leverages training materials, standard operating procedures, and partnerships with county jails and state public safety and public health agencies developed through the HEALing Communities Study to deliver tailored TA services.

Results: Only a handful of Kentucky counties have initiated expenditure planning for opioid settlement funds. TA with state partners has entailed projects to expand naloxone distribution with the Department of Pretrial Services. Additionally, the RITA Hub is collaborating with several regional jails facing potential federal litigation for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act to expand medication treatment for OUD to all people incarcerated for whom it is clinically indicated.

Conclusions: These partnerships demonstrate the diverse drivers of TA uptake among agencies providing carceral health services and the importance of TA in translating opioid abatement policy into practice benefiting incarcerated populations.

Public health implications: It is critical to connect implementation capacity developed through federal research funding with the change management needs of local and state agencies in the criminal-legal system responsible for carceral health.