A bankruptcy judge has indicated he will approve Purdue Pharma's bankruptcy plan, a move that will dissolve the company and release billions of dollars to opioid plaintiffs. Under the plan, the Sackler family, owners of Purdue Pharma, will contribute up to $7 billion from their personal wealth over 15 years.
This settlement addresses thousands of lawsuits stemming from Purdue's aggressive marketing of OxyContin as non-addictive, a practice that contributed to the national opioid crisis. Purdue Pharma will pay an initial $900 million and then cease to exist as it is restructured into a public benefit company called Knoa Pharma.
This new entity will produce a limited amount of opioid painkillers and overdose-reversal medications, with its profits designated for programs addressing the ongoing opioid crisis. This settlement, valued at $7.4 billion, is the largest reached with a single pharmaceutical company in the course of the national opioid litigation.
The settlement will provide much-needed funds to states, municipalities, hospitals, school districts, approximately 150,000 personal injury victims, and families of infants born with opioid withdrawal symptoms. Additionally, Purdue and the Sacklers are expected to pay $175 million to federally recognized tribes.
Payments to claimants could potentially begin as early as March or April.
