Giant US drug maker Johnson & Johnson pays $230mn to settle opioids lawsuit

Giant US drug maker and COVID-19 vaccine manufacturer Johnson & Johnson has reportedly reached a $230 million agreement to settle a legal conviction in an opioid lawsuit filed by the state of New York’s attorney general.

“The opioid epidemic has wreaked havoc on countless communities across New York state and the rest of the nation, leaving millions still addicted to dangerous and deadly opioids,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James in a Saturday press release cited in local press reports.

“Johnson & Johnson helped fuel this fire, but today they’re committing to leaving the opioid business – not only in New York, but across the entire country,” the statement further emphasized.

The Johnson & Johnson settlement stems from a civil lawsuit filed in March 2019 in an attempt “to hold accountable” drug manufacturers and distributors that fueled the opioid epidemic.

In February, James and a coalition involving almost every US state attorney general secured an agreement with the consulting firm McKinsey & Company to provide $573 million for opioid “treatment and abatement,” according to press reports. The agreement stems from investigations of McKinsey’s work for opioid companies to promote their drugs.

Authorities across the US have accused major drug makers and distributors of promoting the prescription of powerful opioid painkillers beyond medically essential levels, prompting the addicted to seek out heroin and illicitly made fentanyl.

“We are also delivering up to $230 million to fund opioid prevention, treatment and education efforts across New York state,” the press release added. “While no amount of money will ever compensate for the thousands who lost their lives or became addicted to opioids across our state or provide solace to the countless families torn apart by this crisis, these funds will be used to prevent any future devastation.”

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Other US states and cities have also filed legal actions against drug manufacturers and distributors over the past few years as the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) declared that from 1999 to 2019, nearly 500,000 people died from an overdose involving any opioid, including prescription and illicit drugs.

The “first wave” of the epidemic began in the late 1990s, with increases in deadly overdoses involving prescription opioids, press reports noted, adding that the next phase started in 2010, with a dramatic increase in overdose deaths involving heroin.

In 2013, a third phase began with a surge in fatal overdoses involving synthetic opioids, especially illegally manufactured fentanyl, according to the CDC.

Johnson & Johnson, meanwhile, declared in a statement that it decided in 2020 to “discontinue all of its prescription pain medications in the United States,” but rejected admission of any wrongdoing.

“The settlement is not an admission of liability or wrongdoing by the company,” it said, adding that the agreement with New York state was in keeping with the terms of a previously announced $5 billion “all-in” agreement to settle opioid lawsuits and claims by states, cities, counties and tribal governments.

The company further claimed its actions “relating to the marketing and promotion of important prescription pain medications were appropriate and responsible.”

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The New York lawsuit, according to the reports, also targeted Purdue Pharma; members of the Sackler Family, who own Purdue; Mallinckrodt; Endo Health Solutions; Teva Pharmaceuticals USA; Allergan Finance; McKesson; Cardinal Health; Amerisource Bergen; and Rochester Drug Cooperative.

The claims against Purdue, the Sackler family, Mallinckrodt and Rochester Drug Cooperative are proceeding through bankruptcy court. The other companies are scheduled to stand trial this week.

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