NYC funds 500 peer recovery workers to combat addiction crisis

New York City is expanding its fight against drug and alcohol addiction with a major investment in peer recovery services. On Thursday, Mayor Zohran Mamdani will announce new funding to train and hire 500 people with lived experience of addiction. The move aims to strengthen support for those struggling with substance use.

The city is allocating $12 million from opioid settlement funds to build its peer recovery workforce. These workers, trained and certified based on their own recovery journeys, will conduct outreach and help enrol more New Yorkers in treatment programs. Their role will focus on connecting people to life-saving services in communities hit hardest by addiction.

Seven organisations across the five boroughs will receive funding through city contracts. The money comes from New York’s $190 million share of opioid settlements—a total expected to reach $550 million by 2041. In the last fiscal year alone, the city spent $41 million of these funds on overdose prevention and treatment. The push comes as overdose deaths show uneven progress. While accidental drug fatalities have fallen citywide, rates remain stubbornly high in certain neighbourhoods and among older Black New Yorkers. Officials have set a target to cut overdose deaths by 25% by 2030.

The new initiative will see 500 trained peers join the recovery effort, backed by legal settlements with opioid manufacturers. Their work will focus on outreach and enrolment in treatment, targeting areas with the greatest need. The city’s investment reflects a broader strategy to turn settlement funds into direct support for struggling communities.