Healthcare giant Johnson & Johnson mentioned on Tuesday that it has agreed to pay $20.4 million to settle the claims made by two Ohio counties against it.
By settling the claims, the company will effectively avoid a lengthy and likely costly federal trial that could result in the company being held accountable for the nation's opioid crisis.
The aforementioned Federal Court trial, which is scheduled to be held later this month, will be against multiple manufacturers and distributors in Cleveland. The companies that are going to be part of the trial are those who have been found to be involved in the distribution and manufacturing of opioids.
Johnson & Johnson is the fourth major drug manufacturer to settle claims against it ahead of the Federal Court trial.
As of today, there are currently around 2,600 lawsuits that have been filed by state and local governments in various states across the US. The
The last company to agree to a settlement was Mallinckrodt Plc, which agreed to pay $24 million to the same two counties on Monday. The first two companies to settle claims against them were Endo International Plc and Allergan Plc.
While the four companies may be temporarily off the hook, the remaining defendants in the Federal Court trial are still expected to appear. Some of the larger companies that have been implicated include AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health, McKesson Corp, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd, Henry Schein Inc, and Walgreens Boots Alliance.
In its settlement, Johnson & Johnson did not admit any liability. The company will be paying $10 million to Summit and Cuyahoga counties as part of the settlement. It will also be reimbursing the counties around $5 million for their legal expenses. Johnson & Johnson has also agreed to pay $5.4 million to various non-profit organizations that are currently involved in opioid-related support programs.
Johnson & Johnson mentioned in a prepared statement that the settlement was its way of seeking "meaningful progress" in finding a solution to the country's opioid crisis.
The company also stated that the settlement should allow the company to avoid unnecessary resource demands and to save it from the uncertain nature of the federal trial. Johnson & Johnson further stated that is working collaboratively with officials and the community to address the current crisis.
Along with other drug manufacturers, Johnson & Johnson was implicated by officials in the prolific spread of opioids throughout the country. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were over 400,000 overdose deaths that were recorded from 1999 to 2017.
