Marla Kingkade has worked in the substance use prevention and behavioral health fields for over thirty years. In April 2018, Marla was hired to facilitate the San Diego County Meth Strike Force (MSF) and the Prescription Drug Abuse Taskforce (PDATF). The initiatives bring together over 300 + community partners to reduce harm and to prevent overdose deaths due to substance misuse.  

In 2023, MSF and PDATF merged to form the San Diego County Substance Use and Overdose Prevention Taskforce (SUOPT). To date, SUOPT has facilitated numerous community forums, workshops, and trainings. In addition, SUOPT, along with community partners, created the METH 360, Fentanyl, Naloxone, Good Samaritan and Snap Chat Toolkits, the Safe Disposal Campaign, the San Diego County Harm Reduction Resource Interactive Map, and the SUD Resource Connection Information Card. SUOPT continues to partner with the media outlets to distribute information on substance use disorder, naloxone and harm reduction strategies, including overdose prevention.