New York Could Get $524M Under Opioid Settlements with Teva Pharmaceuticals
Edited by: TJVNews.com
New York will receive up to $524 million from drugmaker Teva to settle claims that the company contributed to the U.S. opioid epidemic, the largest amount secured from an opioid manufacturer or distributor sued by the state, Attorney General Letitia James announced Thursday, according to the AP report.
The state has reached a series of settlements with drug companies following an attorney general’s lawsuit in 2019 accusing them of deceptive marketing and failing to prevent the unlawful diversion of controlled substances.
CNN reported that the funds secured as part of Teva’s $4 billion-plus global settlement and separately from the state achieving a “historic liability verdict” following a jury trial against the company in 2021 — marks the largest settlement that Attorney General James has reached with an individual opioid defendant, according to a statement from James’ office.
The attorney general plans to make a motion to remove Teva from opioid litigation effectively concluding New York’s opioid trial after James filed what she called the nation’s most extensive lawsuit in 2019, CNN reported.
The agreement also commits Teva to prohibit marketing opioids and funding third parties that promote them, and a ban on high-dose opioids and prescription savings programs among other injunctive relief, as was reported by CNN.
In total, the attorney general’s office has secured over $2 billion from opioid manufacturers and distributors to fund abatement, treatment, and prevention resources as part of her efforts.
“The false information that Teva and other opioids manufacturers propagated about the safety of their drugs inflicted tremendous damage on the lives of countless people, while also abusing the health insurance system,” said New York’s Superintendent of Financial Services Adrienne Harris in a statement, as was reported by CNN. “No monetary penalty can undo the immeasurable harm the opioid crisis has dealt to families across the country, but DFS is proud to have played a role in bringing about this resolution, holding opioid manufacturers and distributors accountable for their actions.”
The AP reported that Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. and its affiliates were found liable last year for public nuisance charges by a jury on Long Island. To resolve the remedies phase, Teva agreed to pay out $313 million over 18 years, James said.
New York will additionally receive $211 million from a $4.3 billion national settlement Teva agreed to in July if it is approved by state and local governments and tribes, according to the attorney general.
Teva was the last remaining opioid defendant not currently in bankruptcy and James said the agreement ends her litigation against the companies. The state has secured more than $2 billion to combat the scourge of opioids, she said, as was reported by the AP.
New York created a settlement fund to earmark the money for abatement, treatment, and prevention efforts in hard-hit communities.
“This is a landmark day in our battle against the opioid crisis and I am proud to be able to deliver critical funding and resources to the communities Teva and other companies ravaged with their rampant misconduct,” James said in a prepared release, the AP reported.
The agreement includes a prohibition on marketing opioids, restrictions on political lobbying and a ban on high-dose opioids.
Teva Pharmaceuticals announced in July a $4.35 billion proposed nationwide settlement that could resolve thousands of lawsuits over the drugmaker’s alleged role in the US opioid epidemic.
CNN reported that the news comes on the heels of a separate tentative agreement from CVS and Walgreens to pay a combined $10 billion to settle lawsuits brought by states and local governments alleging the retailers mishandled prescriptions of opioid painkillers. (CNN.com & AP.com)
