Tracie Gardner, the co-director of the National Black Harm Reduction Network who was senior vice president of policy advocacy at the Legal Action Network, was named to the Opioid Settlement Fund Advisory Board on Thursday by state Attorney General Letitia James. 

James announced the appointment in a statement, saying Gardner, who is from Brooklyn, has worked for more than three decades in public health and public policy. She said Gardner will replace Avi Israel, president and founder of Save the Michaels of the World, Inc., who is stepping down from the board, as the attorney general's one appointment to it. 

“Tracie Gardner has spent her career bringing unique expertise to public health challenges, especially those that disproportionately impact communities of color,” James said. “She is distinctly qualified to sit on the Opioid Settlement Fund Advisory Board to help steer critical investments in prevention, treatment, and recovery programs to the most vulnerable in our state."

Established in 2022, the Opioid Settlement Fund Advisory Board provides recommendations to state leaders for distributing more than $2.7 billion in funding secured from opioid manufacturers and distributors. 

“As New Yorkers continue to endure the devastating impact of the opioid crisis, Black and Brown New Yorkers face higher barriers to access quality addiction treatment and recovery and harm reduction services,” Gardner said in the statement. “My work has always focused on tackling New York’s public health challenges in a way that is equitable, just, and inclusive, and I look forward to supporting the board’s mission of prioritizing these critically needed resources in communities of color that have been torn apart by the overdose crisis and the war on drugs."