California has secured $70 million from opioid manufacturers in settlement

(FOX40.COM) — California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced on July 10 that approximately $720 million has been secured nationwide in settlements with eight drug manufacturers responsible for producing opioid pills and exacerbating the nationwide opioid crisis.
• Video above: States debate how to spend opioid settlement money

Bonta said that this was based on the overwhelming participation of attorneys general across the country, and with all eight defendants agreeing to proceed with a sign-on period for local governments, California could receive more than $70 million in total.

“So long as the opioid epidemic continues to ravage communities in California and across the country, we will continue to hold accountable those who played a role in fueling it,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Today’s announcement holds accountable eight drug makers for their role in worsening the opioid crisis and brings much-needed funds for addiction treatment, prevention, and recovery to those impacted by this crisis. The California Department of Justice is committed to keeping our communities safe from the threat posed by the opioid crisis.”

Bonta stated that as part of the settlements, the eight defendants will pay funds to states to address the opioid crisis.

• Mylan (now part of Viatris): $284,447,916 paid over nine years
• Hikma: $95,818,293 paid over one to four years
• Amneal: $71,751,010 paid over 10 years
• Apotex: $63,682,369 paid in a single year
• Indivior: $38,022,450 paid over four years
• Sun: $30,992,087 paid over one to four years
• Alvogen: $18,680,162 paid in a single year
• Zydus: $14,859,220 paid in a single year

In addition to these payments, many of the settlements have allowed states to receive free pharmaceutical products or cash instead of these products, according to Bonta. Seven of the companies, not including Indivior, are prohibited from promoting or marketing options and opioid products, making or selling any product that contains more than 40 mg of oxycodone per pill, and they are required to place a monitoring and reporting system to catch suspicious orders.

Bonta said, “Indivior has agreed to not manufacture or sell opioid products for the next 10 years, but it will be able to continue marketing and selling medications to treat opioid use disorder.”

At this time, the settlements were negotiated by the following states:

• California
• North Carolina
• Colorado
• Illinois
• New York
• Oregon
• Tennesse
• Utah
• Virginia