California, 11 other states negotiate tentative $4.25B settlement with opioid maker Teva
California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced Tuesday that 12 states have negotiated a tentative $4.25 billion settlement with opioid manufacturer Teva Pharmaceutical Industries over its marketing and distribution of potent and addictive painkillers.
“This agreement is another major step toward addressing the opioid crisis and healing our communities,” Bonta said. “Nothing can undo the harm opioid makers like Teva have inflicted on families across the country or the lives lost to the opioid epidemic. But this agreement will provide much-needed relief for its victims and importantly, critical funds for overdose prevention and opioid addiction disorder treatment.”
Bonta said the states continue to negotiate some critical details of the settlement but that he was sharing news of the tentative deal because the Israel-based drugmaker had disclosed that there was an agreement-in-principle Tuesday as the company also released its quarterly earnings announcement.
“We are ... pleased to have reached a nationwide agreement in principle, pending participation by states and (municipalities), to resolve the majority of our costly legacy opioids litigation, and importantly, make critical medicines available to those most impacted by the U.S. opioid epidemic,” said Teva Chief Executive Officer Kåre Schultz, in a company statement.
Teva produces oxycodone and a number of other generic opioids as well as branded fentanyl products Actiq and Fentora that can be used for cancer pain.
The state attorneys general alleged that Teva had promoted its fentanyl products to non-cancer patients, and that in marketing campaigns, the company downplayed the drugs’ addictive properties while overstating how the drugs could help. The states also alleged that the drugmaker and its distributor Anda failed use required protocols to monitor suspicious orders.
As part of the agreement, Bonta said, Teva will pay a maximum of $4.25 billion over 13 years to states that participate in the deal. That settlement includes settlements that Teva already had negotiated with individual states, funds for participating states and local governments, and the $240 million of monetary payments in lieu of product described below.
Teva also will supply the participating states and municipalities with a total of $1.2 billion in generic naloxone, a drug that can counteract opioid overdoses, over a 10-year period. States may elect to take $240 million in lieu of the allotted supply of naloxone..
California, Illinois, Iowa, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin led the negotiations with Teva. The state of New York continues to negotiate a separate settlement with Teva.
This story was originally published July 27, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
