Beaver State News

State will receive nearly $220 million more for opioid crisis response 

Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum today announced the final acceptance of $17.3 billion in opioid agreements by drug makers Teva and Allergan and pharmacies CVS and Walgreens. Oregon is anticipated to receive nearly $219.4 million over the next 15 years, with funds starting to arrive to state and local governments by the end of 2023.

The Oregon Health Authority now estimates that five Oregonians die every week from opioid-related overdoses. In 2021, 745 Oregonians died from opioid overdoses, up from 472 deaths in 2020 and 280 in 2019. The money received in these settlements is shared between local governments and the state-wide Opioid Settlement Prevention Treatment and Recovery Board. The funds will be used to combat the opioid epidemic and prevent and treat substance-use disorders.

“The damage done to families, communities, to our state and our country can never be undone, but we can hold those at fault accountable and make them help pay the costs associated with Oregon’s response to the crisis,” said AG Rosenblum.  “I want to thank the county and city governments who joined us in these settlements and helped maximize Oregon’s total recovery.”

Breaking down Oregon’s opioid settlement agreements further:

• Walgreens: Oregon will receive up to $71 million out of a $5.7 billion national settlement over 15 years.
• CVS: Oregon will receive up to $65 million out of a $5 billion national settlement over 10 years.
• Allergan/Teva Pharmaceuticals: Oregon will receive a value of up to $83.4 million of the $6.6 billion national settlement, with Teva paying out over 13 years and Allergan over 7 years.

The settlements also provide for significant injunctive relief that, among other things, prohibits Teva from promoting opioids and bans Allergan from selling opioid for at least 10 years. CVS and Walgreens are required to monitor, report, and share data about suspicious activity related to opioid prescriptions. This court-ordered injunctive relief will help ensure a crisis like this does not happen again.

For more than 15 years, DOJ’s legal team has been a leader in major multi-state litigation and settlements involving the pharmaceutical industry. Attorney General Rosenblum and the Oregon Department of Justice team, led by Assistant Attorney General David Hart, have led the way in holding corporations who are responsible for the opioid crisis accountable.

In 2022 alone, the Oregon Department of Justice signed onto eight multi-state agreements with companies that either distributed, produced, or sold opioids. Including these four settlements, Oregon is expected to receive $701.5 million from these settlements to fund opioid abatement and recovery, with the money going directly to Oregon counties, cities, and other programs designed for treatment, recovery, and prevention services.

Original source can be found here.