Vermont will receive $64 million under a settlement reached with four U.S. companies over their role in fueling the opioid crisis, according to the Vermont attorney general's office.
Drug company Johnson & Johnson as well as drug wholesalers AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson have agreed to pay a total of $26 billion for their role in the crisis. Under the deal, the companies acknowledge no wrongdoing.
In a Friday press release, Attorney General TJ Donovan said the funds will be used for health care and drug treatment programs.
"No amount of money can ever make up for the lives impacted by the opioid crisis,” Donovan said. “My hope is that these funds are used to invest in treatment and recovery services for those who suffer from substance use disorder and to provide prevention for the next generation.”
Money from the settlement is set to start flowing to states in early April.
A second multi-billion dollar deal with drug manufacturer Purdue Pharma, maker of OxyContin, is still being negotiated. In an interview with VPR last summer, Donovan said Vermont had not signed on to the Purdue settlement because the state would get about $13 million over nine years — an amount of money he said was not "sufficient."
Preliminary data released earlier this month by the Vermont Department of Health shows a record 181 Vermonters died of an opioid overdose in 2021.
Have questions, comments or tips?Send us a message or tweet editor Brittany Patterson @amusedbrit.
