The Meramec Regional Planning Commision is trying to fight the abuse of opioid by area youth.
Jane Johnannsen is the program coordinator for the Opioid Affected Youth Initiative and a Steelville native.
She says the commission got the initiative underway with a $997,000 grant from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency.
Johannsen says their first step in getting the initiative underway is convening a consortium.
Johannsen lays out the timeline for bringing the consortium together, designing and implementing a plan.