IN Attorney General sends out $8.8 million in next round of opioid settlement funds

Friday, May 17, 2024 at 8:12 AM

Attorney General Todd Rokita is dispensing more than $8.8 million to Indiana cities, towns and counties in the next round of opioid settlement funds distributed under his leadership.

Attorney General Rokita and his team secured these settlements from companies that allegedly contributed to the state’s opioid epidemic through irresponsible and/or unlawful actions.

“Hoosiers have seen far too many of our loved ones suffer and even die from opioid addiction and overdose,” Attorney General Rokita said. “Misconduct by drug companies helped start this epidemic in the first place, and it has played a large role in perpetuating the crisis. We can’t bring back lost lives, but we can hold these companies accountable and enable communities to use settlement funds on prevention, treatment and enforcement programs.”

In total, Attorney General Rokita has reached settlements worth more than $925 million with companies involved in some aspects of making, selling, distributing or advertising opioids.

This round of distributions includes a one-time payment representing communities’ share of a settlement with Publicis Health to resolve investigations into the global marketing and communications firm’s role in the prescription opioid crisis. Publicis helped Purdue Pharma and other opioid manufacturers market and sell opioids.

In addition, this round of payments includes settlement funds from two distributors — AmerisourceBergen (now known as Cencora) and Cardinal Health. Additional distribution payments are expected in the fall of 2024 from AmerisourceBergen (now known as Cencora), Cardinal Health, McKesson, Teva, Janssen, CVS, and Allergan.

Besides the tragic personal toll on families, the opioid crisis has imposed significant costs on Indiana’s health care, child welfare, and criminal justice systems.

Local governments have discretion in choosing exactly how to use the opioid funds. Guidelines can be found on Attorney General Rokita’s website.

The settlement framework continues to be a 50-50 split between the state and local governments. A listing of the payments estimated for each community for the full 18 years can be found on the Office of Attorney General website.