- Peru's ex-president Toledo gets 20 years for corruption
- Chile launches vaccine that neuters dogs for a year
- Toxicology tests show Liam Payne had 'multiple' drugs in system: reports
- WNBA players union opts out of deal, now set to end in 2025
- Harris woos on-the-fence Republicans, Trump tours storm damage
- Henderson howler hands Forest victory over Crystal Palace
- Yankees and Dodgers to renew epic rivalry in World Series
- Stock markets mostly slide, oil jumps as China cuts rates
- Parents of Venezuela minors held after election ask UN to intervene
- NBA and Nike extend partnership deal for 12 years
- Israel strikes 300 Hezbollah targets as US urges war's end
- Tourist dreams turn sour after Cuba lights go off
- Italy PM seeks to save Albanian migrant deal amid spat with judges
- Tagovailoa returns to NFL practice Wednesday after concussion
- US infant mortality spiked after right to abortion overturned: study
- Blinken back to Middle East to push for Gaza truce
- Neymar returns for Al Hilal in Al Ain thriller
- TGL set for January start as Woods-McIlroy might meet Jan. 27
- US Grand Prix - three things we learned
- Welsh rugby's future more important to Gatland than saving his job
- Venezuela arrests ex-oil minister accused of US links
- President Biya lands back in Cameroon after health rumours
- Watson out for NFL season with ruptured Achilles tendon
- Disney expects to name Iger's successor in early 2026
- Emery wants to 'break barriers' at transformed Aston Villa
- Hezbollah-linked financial firm an economic lifeline for Lebanese
- London trial probes 2015 Brazil mine disaster
- Police in Mozambique disperse vote protest
- Ancelotti wants goals over pressing from Madrid star Mbappe
- Major crypto, diamond fraud trial opens in France
- Electricity restored to 50% of Havana after nationwide blackout: Cuba state media
- How much aid is getting into Gaza?
- King Charles caps Australia trip with Opera House bash
- England's Buttler out of West Indies ODI series
- Moldova president hails EU referendum win after Russia meddling claims
- Van Dijk talking to 'right people' over Liverpool contract
- Vietnam's top leader pushes anti-corruption fight
- Arteta urges Arsenal to use Bournemouth 'pain' against Shakhtar
- Rabada fastest to 300th Test wicket, as Bangladesh all out for 106
- Erdogan rival Gulen dies in exile at 83
- Man Utd's Ten Hag relishing Europa League clash with Mourinho
- Amnesty says migrant workers exploited at Carrefour Saudi stores
- Fethullah Gulen: ex-Erdogan ally who became public enemy number one
- Seoul demands 'immediate withdrawal' of North Korean troops in Russia
- WHO to evacuate 1,000 Gazan women, children for urgent medical care
- Erdogan's rival Fetullah Gulen dies in exile aged 83
- Gauff-led USA pitted with Canada at season-opening United Cup
- Sanofi pursues sale of painkiller after political controversy
- Rabada takes 300th wicket as Bangladesh stumble to 60-6 at lunch
- Alpacas, hecklers and climate warnings: King Charles visits Australia's capital
RBGPF | 1% | 61.11 | $ | |
JRI | -0.53% | 13.15 | $ | |
BCC | -2.78% | 137.9 | $ | |
NGG | -1.45% | 67.03 | $ | |
RYCEF | -0.68% | 7.4 | $ | |
CMSC | -0.53% | 24.65 | $ | |
SCS | -0.93% | 12.89 | $ | |
CMSD | -0.68% | 24.87 | $ | |
RIO | -0.63% | 64.95 | $ | |
RELX | -1.13% | 47.63 | $ | |
BCE | -0.45% | 33.39 | $ | |
VOD | -1.35% | 9.63 | $ | |
AZN | -1.06% | 77.44 | $ | |
GSK | -1.02% | 38.16 | $ | |
BP | 0.44% | 31.47 | $ | |
BTI | -0.73% | 34.25 | $ |
Pharma giants to pay $590 mn to US Native Americans over opioids
A group of pharmaceutical companies and distributors agreed to pay $590 million to settle lawsuits connected to opioid addiction among Native American tribes, according to a US court filing released Tuesday.
The agreement is the latest amid a deluge of litigation spawned by the US opioid crisis, which has claimed more than 500,000 lives over the last 20 years and ensnared some of the largest firms in the world of American medicine.
The companies involved in the latest agreement include Johnson & Johnson and McKesson, according to a filing in an Ohio federal court by a committee of plaintiffs in the case.
Native Americans have "suffered some of the worst consequences of the opioid epidemic of any population in the United States," according to the filing from the Plaintiffs' Tribal Leadership Committee, which cited per-capita death rates compared with other ethnic groups.
"The burden of paying these increased costs has diverted scarce funds from other needs and has imposed severe financial burdens on the tribal plaintiffs."
Johnson & Johnson, McKesson and the other two companies in the accord -- AmerisourceBergen and Cardinal Health -- have previously agreed to a $26 billion global settlement on opioid cases.
J&J said Tuesday the $150 million it agreed to pay in the Native American case has been deducted from what it owes in the global settlement.
"This settlement is not an admission of any liability or wrongdoing and the company will continue to defend against any litigation that the final agreement does not resolve," the company said.
It was unclear if the other companies would take what they owe under the latest agreement from the global settlement.
- 'Measure of justice' -
Robins Kaplan, a law firm negotiating on the behalf of the plaintiffs, said in a statement the agreement must still be approved by the Native American tribes, which are pursuing other claims regarding opioids.
"This initial settlement for tribes in the national opioid litigation is a crucial first step in delivering some measure of justice to the tribes and reservation communities across the United States that have been ground zero for the opioid epidemic," Tara Sutton, an attorney at the firm who negotiated on behalf of the Native Americans.
Douglas Yankton, chairman of the North Dakota-based Spirit Lake Nation, said the money from the settlement would "help fund crucial, on-reservation, culturally appropriate opioid treatment services."
All tribes recognized by the US government, 574 in all, will be able to participate in the agreement, even if they have not filed lawsuits.
The settlement is separate from a prior agreement that resulted in $75 million in payments to the Cherokee Nation from three distribution companies, including McKesson.
Many of the lawsuits regarding the opioid crisis have centered on Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of OxyContin, a highly addictive prescription painkiller blamed for causing a spike in addiction.
A judge in December overturned the company's bankruptcy plan because it provided some immunity for the owners of the company in exchange for a $4.5 billion payout to victims of the opioid crisis.
The litigation wave has also swamped pharmacies owned by Walmart, Walgreens and CVS, which a jury found in November bear responsibility for the opioid crisis in two counties in Ohio.
M.Gameiro--PC