In the seventh episode of The Saving Dose, Dr. John Hsu and William Pedranti are joined by Ed Mahon, an investigative journalist at Spotlight PA who has spent years covering how opioid settlement funds are being allocated across Pennsylvania and who actually has a say in those decisions.

The opioid epidemic has generated one of the largest legal settlements in American history. Billions of dollars have been distributed to states and counties with the stated purpose of funding addiction treatment, recovery services, and prevention programs. What is actually happening with that money, and whether the communities most affected by the crisis have a seat at the table when spending decisions are made, is a question most media coverage has not answered.

That is what Ed covers. This episode goes inside the accountability gap at the center of the settlement distribution process, why the voices of people directly affected by addiction are still being left out of policy decisions, and what investigative journalism is doing to close that gap in Pennsylvania.

In this episode:

What the opioid settlement funds are, where they came from, and why the distribution of billions of dollars to states and counties has not automatically translated into better treatment access for the people who need it most.

Who is making the decisions about how settlement money gets spent, why those decision-making bodies often do not include people with lived experience of addiction or recovery, and what that absence costs in terms of policy effectiveness.

What Spotlight PA's Voices of the Epidemic series uncovered about the gap between how officials describe the settlement spending and what is actually happening on the ground in affected communities.

Why Pennsylvania is a useful lens for the national picture: what the state's experience with the opioid crisis, from rural counties to Philadelphia, reveals about the structural challenges that no amount of settlement money fixes on its own.

The intersection of chronic pain and addiction: why 25% of Americans living with chronic pain and nearly 50 million Americans with some form of substance use disorder are not entirely separate populations, and what treating both in the same patient requires.

John's multimodal pain treatment approach: ultrasound-guided pain blocks, anti-seizure medications, acupuncture, TENS units, and physical therapy — a framework he has been using since 1999 when a colleague accused him of practicing Chinese medicine on American patients.

Why 75% of patients do not take their medications correctly, why complete medication transparency is essential to individualizing care, and what happens to treatment outcomes when that transparency is missing.

What people who want to make a difference on the opioid crisis can do, and where to follow Ed's ongoing investigative coverage.

About the Hosts

John Hsu, MD is the Founder and CEO of iPill and a practicing anesthesiologist with 25 years in pain management and addiction medicine. He has taken multiple products through FDA approval and commercial launch. Connect with John: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-hsu-md-300a8b2a/

William Pedranti is the COO of iPill, a Georgetown Law graduate, and co-founder of PENG Life Science Ventures. He has taken a biotech company from founding through FDA approval, commercial launch, and exit. Connect with William: https://www.linkedin.com/in/williampedranti/

About the Guest

Ed Mahon is an investigative journalist at Spotlight PA covering opioid settlement accountability and addiction policy in Pennsylvania. His work focuses on how settlement funds are allocated, who has a voice in those spending decisions, and elevating the perspectives of people directly affected by the opioid crisis. Follow his work at spotlightpa.org.

Website: thesavingdose.com

This podcast is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare professional before making any treatment decisions.

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