By Aidan Mortensen | KOAL News
The ongoing fight against the opioid epidemic has reached a new milestone.
On Monday, June 16, the Office of the Utah Attorney General announced that Utah, alongside 54 eligible jurisdictions, agreed to sign onto a $7.4 billion settlement agreement with Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family over their significant role in fueling the opioid epidemic.
“Utah families deserve this resolution after Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family recklessly harmed our communities, and contributed to the opioid epidemic,” said Utah Attorney General Derek Brown. “I will continue to use all the tools I have available, including litigation and prosecution, to protect Utahns in the future from these deadly drugs.”
Purdue Pharma was the manufacturer of drugs like OxyContin, with the company marketing the drug as a nonaddictive, long-lasting painkiller, which the company said would revolutionize the treatment of chronic pain.
This marketing began to unravel in 2019 when the Office of the Utah Attorney General and the Division of Consumer Protection filed a lawsuit against the Sacklers and Purdue Pharma, alleging that they had participated in deceptive practices and intensified the crisis in Utah by providing nearly $200,000 in gifts and payments to Utah prescribers between 2013 and 2017.
The lawsuit was set for administrative trial before Purdue Pharma filed for bankruptcy.
“Utah families deserve this resolution after Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family recklessly harmed our communities, and contributed to the opioid epidemic,” said Utah Attorney General Derek Brown. “I will continue to use all the tools I have available, including litigation and prosecution, to protect Utahns in the future from these deadly drugs.”
According to a release from the Attorney General’s office, the settlement will see “the Sackler family pay $6.5 billion over the next 15 years, with approximately $900 million coming from Purdue Pharma upon its emergence from bankruptcy protection.”
Additionally, the settlement “ends the Sacklers’ control of Purdue Pharma and restricts its sale of opioids in the United States. Purdue Pharma’s future lobbying and marketing efforts will also be limited and monitored.”
Utah will receive $57 million from the agreement. This money will support the Utah Opioid Task Force and continue addressing the epidemic in communities. It also adds to the $540 million that the state has received from other lawsuits.
Of this money, $265 million will go to the individual counties in the state.