The opioid crisis has resulted in more than 500,000 overdose deaths over the past two decades. The federal government, states, and other entities have filed litigation against drug manufacturers, suppliers, and pharmacies as one approach to address the harm and suffering caused by inappropriate opioid prescribing practices. Billions of dollars in settlements have since been awarded, and more is likely. To ensure these funds are used in areas relevant to opioids, policy and public health groups led by experts at Johns Hopkins University, Harvard University, and other organizations have proposed frameworks detailing priorities on what to do with the money. But none of them address the needs of one critical group: patients who suffer from acute and chronic pain. Gaps in pain care and treatment, one of the key factors that enabled inappropriate opioid prescribing in the first place, persist. I am a physician-scientist specializing in pain medicine. My colleagues, law professor …