BOSTON — Massachusetts and New Hampshire will be getting more money for treatment and prevention of drug addiction under a multi-state settlement with OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma over its role in the deadly opioid crisis.
The $6 billion settlement, unveiled earlier this week, requires the Sackler family to give up control of the Connecticut-based company, chip more of their personal finances to the deal and provide an apology to families who lost loved ones to opioid abuse. In exchange, the Sacklers will be shielded from civil lawsuits.
If approved by a federal judge, Massachusetts will get an estimated $110 million from the revised settlement, while New Hampshire will get $46 million. That’s an increase over the initial settlement payments for the two states.
Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, who was among the first to sue Purdue and the Sacklers in 2018, welcomed a final resolution to the litigation. She said a provision in the original settlement requiring the Sackler’s to turn over documents detailing their business operations was preserved as part of the new deal.
“It’s time to deliver results: to expose the Sacklers’ secrets, pay compensation to the families who were hurt, and commit billions to harm reduction, treatment, and recovery,” Healey said in a statement.
In New Hampshire, Attorney General John Formella said Purdue and the Sackler family “bear significant responsibility for causing so much harm to our state.”
“While no amount of money will be enough to address the harm they caused, this settlement is a significant step toward holding the Sacklers accountable for what they did and will provide much needed funds for our state to continue fighting this epidemic,” Formella said in a statement.
For many, opioid addiction has its roots in prescription painkillers such as Oxycontin, which led them to street-bought heroin and fentanyl once the pills ran out.
More than 10,000 people have died from opioid-related overdoses in Massachusetts in the past five years, according to public health data. In New Hampshire, opioid overdoses have killed more than 3,000 residents since 2014, according to the latest state data.
Nationally, opioid-related overdose deaths soared to a record 100,000 last year. Fentanyl was involved in more than 60% of the overdose deaths.
As part of the revised settlement, the Sackler families have also agreed to apologize for the role their drug played in the opioid crisis.
“While the families have acted lawfully in all respects, they sincerely regret that OxyContin, a prescription medicine that continues to help people suffering from chronic pain, unexpectedly became part of an opioid crisis that has brought grief and loss to far too many families and communities,” the apology reads.
But the Sacklers’ apology rings hollow for Doug Griffin of Newton, New Hampshire, who lost his 20-year-old daughter, Courtney, to opioid addiction.
“It doesn’t cut it for me,” he said. “They can say whatever they want, but none of them are facing any jail time. More than 100,000 people died of overdoses last year.”
Griffin said the additional settlement money will be helpful in reducing opioid overdose “if it’s used properly” but said more resources need to be devoted to addressing mental illness and other root causes of drug addiction.
“It’s good that they’re pushing for them to pay their fair share, but there’s nothing is going to take the place of my daughter,” Griffin said.
Christian M. Wade covers the Massachusetts Statehouse for North of Boston Media Group’s newspapers and websites. Email him at [email protected].
OPIOID SETTLEMENT
Under the settlement, the Sackler families must pay $6 billion — about $1 billion above the original bankruptcy plan — as well as an additional $175 million, spread over 18 years.
The Sacklers must also issue a “statement of regret” for their role in the opioid epidemic and to the victims whose lives have been devastated.
The Sacklers must allow colleges, universities and other institutions to remove the family name from buildings, scholarships and fellowships.
The Sacklers will be required to participate in a March 9 public hearing where victims and their survivors would be given an opportunity to directly address the family.
They must also release documents related to the marketing, sales and distribution of Purdue’s opioids that were previously shielded from the public.
Source: Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey office and New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella’s office.