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Johnson & Johnson Settles Ohio Lawsuits For $20 Million To Avoid Federal Opioid Trial

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Topline: Johnson & Johnson has settled with two counties in Ohio for $20.4 million as it seeks to avoid a looming federal trial targeting the role of major pharmaceutical giants in the opioid crisis. 

  • The consumer and medical goods giant paid $10 million to Cuyahoga and Summit counties, providing an additional $5 million to cover their legal fees, and a $5.4 million donation to charities and opioid-related programs.
  • But the firm denied that the move is an admission of their role in the state’s opioid crisis.
  • The settlement comes after the company was fined $572.1 million after a judge found the firm responsible for fuelling Oklahoma’s opioid crisis via a “multi-billion-dollar brainwashing campaign,” which led to the overprescription of Duragesic, also known as fentanyl, and Nucynta.
  • Johnson & Johnson is one of a raft of pharmaceutical firms to avoid the federal trial by settling. Endo International settled for more than $10 million with two Ohio counties over opioid-related lawsuits, while Allergan agreed to a $15 million settlement.

Crucial quote: Johnson & Johnson said in a statement: “The settlement allows the Company to avoid the resource demands and uncertainty of a trial as it continues to seek meaningful progress in addressing the nation’s opioid crisis. The Company recognizes the opioid crisis is a complex public health challenge and is working collaboratively to help communities and people in need.”

Key background: More than 2,000 opioid-related lawsuits are pending across the U.S, as consumers seek to redress the damages of the public health crisis. Some 400,000 people died as a result of opioid overdose between 1999 and 2017. 

Tangent: Sackler-owned Purdue Pharma, manufacturer of opioid medication OxyContin, filed for bankruptcy this month, as part of a deal worth billions to settle several opioid-related cases.

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