NEW YORK – Crime-fighting New York State attorney general candidate Saritha Komatireddy, who will professionalize and depoliticize the office of attorney general if elected in November, today called for every remaining dollar of New York’s $3 billion opioid settlement proceeds to be redirected to one purpose: free in-patient drug treatment for any New Yorker who needs it.
Ms. Komatireddy, a former top federal prosecutor who has prosecuted members of ISIS, al Qaeda, and the Sinaloa Drug Cartel, and served as chief of staff of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, noted that homeless and often mentally-ill New Yorkers suffering from addiction are increasingly prevalent in towns and cities across the state. The mother of four pledged that, on Day One as Attorney General, she will use every lever of the office to ensure that the $3B in settlement proceeds go to treatment, not to the inefficient bureaucratic patchwork that has consumed them so far.
“Ms. James tells you she has secured $3 billion to fight the drug crisis, and then she directs that money to be wasted on political handouts and pet projects.” Ms. Komatireddy said. “Tasers, virtual reality headsets, a baby shower? This is wanton spending that will do nothing to stop the drug crisis that is devastating New York families and communities. It’s no wonder drug deaths have risen 63% under her watch.”
A January 2026 New York Focus investigation found that New York counties have received more than $330 million in opioid settlement funds and are spending the money on items with no plausible connection to ending the addiction crisis: $37,000 in Tasers in Sullivan County, $6,165 in virtual reality headsets in Albany County, a community baby shower in Essex County.
A November 2025 Drug Policy Alliance report found it is “not possible to track all the money.” For 35 percent of counties, there is no public information on spending at all.
Under the New York Opioid Settlement Sharing Agreement, more than ten percent of every settlement dollar flows to counties as “unrestricted” or loosely restricted funds, with no requirement that the money be spent on treatment, on prevention, or on the addiction crisis at all.
“We did not get this money so the State could plug holes in its budget,” Ms. Komatireddy said. “We got it to help save the next life. As Attorney General, that is what I will spend it on. Every dollar. Until the streets are clear and the overdoses stop.”
“As usual, the money is simply going out the door, with no accountability and no oversight.” Ms. Komatireddy continued. “What a wasted opportunity. $3 billion is more than the endowment for most colleges and universities. We should be setting it aside as an endowment for New Yorkers, to provide treatment for every New Yorker who needs it.”
A large share of New York’s homeless population suffers from drug addiction, mental illness, or both, Ms. Komatireddy noted. “The humane response to a sick human being on a sidewalk is not a needle, it’s a bed, a doctor, and a treatment plan. That is what the Purdue Pharma money was supposed to buy. That’s what it should buy.”
“Leaving sick New Yorkers on the street is cruel to the people suffering and disruptive to the local communities that feel under siege. It brings disorder to streets that working New Yorkers have every right to walk down without fear.”
On Day One as Attorney General, Ms. Komatireddy pledged she will direct that every remaining dollar of opioid settlement money go to free in-patient treatment for any New Yorker who needs it — and demand a full public accounting of every dollar spent so far.