An IU School of Medicine professor will receive $4.8 million from the National Institutes of Health to study the issue of drug overdoses among young people who have been involved in the criminal justice system.

The money from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will be used to improve data collection, increase prescription drug monitoring and provide harm reduction training.

The Indiana State Department of Health is getting $7.1 million a year for three years under its grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Drug Czar Jim Carroll says that he wants to share with other states and the federal government what led to a recent drop in overdose deaths in Indiana.

Indiana's funding announced Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services was among more than $1 billion awarded to all 50 states to combat opioid abuse.

Standards for how to investigate and report on overdoses vary widely across states and counties and as a result, opioid overdose deaths are not always captured in the reported data.

Emergency responders say people searching for a greater high have been spraying heavy-duty insect spray on marijuana, tobacco and even banana leaves, and then smoking or ingesting it.

Indiana and other Midwest states experienced a significantly increased number of overdoses at emergency departments.

Last year, the Frankfort Police Department responded to about 60 overdoses.

Some lawmakers worry the measure will ensnare otherwise innocent people.