Arkansas set to receive $44.5 million in Purdue Pharma, Sackler family opioid settlement

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin said Wednesday that the state will receive $44.5 million in the opioid settlement.

Griffin said Arkansas will receive the funds annually through 2040 as part of the settlement with Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family.

The attorney general stated that the payments will be divided into thirds, with one-third, approximately $14.8 million, allocated to the state and managed by the attorney general’s office. The remaining two-thirds will be split between Arkansas municipalities and counties and managed by the Arkansas Opioid Recovery Partnership.

Griffin spoke to the accountability of the Sackler family and Purdue Pharma.

“I am pleased to see Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family held accountable for their actions that perpetuated the opioid crisis across the country, including here in Arkansas,” the attorney general said. “These funds will further opioid abatement in Arkansas and will help provide treatment, research, and prevention.”

The Sackler family was once the principal owner of Purdue Pharma, which began producing OxyContin in 1996. The family relinquished its Purdue ownership as part of a June $7.4 billion opioid crisis settlement.