Opioid Lawsuits: What A Settlement Could Mean For CT

More than 2,000 of the lawsuits aiming to hold drug makers, pharmacies and distributors accountable for the thousands of deaths now attributed to opioid overdoses were consolidated into what is considered a landmark case in Ohio federal court. Numerous other cases are also weeding their way through courts around the country.

Judge Dan Aaron Polster — the federal judge overseeing the proposed negotiations in the landmark case in Ohio — has encouraged parties to settle the case. Just last week, Polster approved the formation of an entity that gives every U.S. city and county a stake in any settlement that may be reached with a defendant.

Many state attorneys general were against Polster’s decision, fearing that their state-level cases would be undermined. In his opinion approving the so-called negotiating class, Polster wrote that the process does not interfere with states settling their own cases in any way that they want.

Related: CT Drug Overdose Deaths Town-By-Town In 2019

Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said Monday he was against the proposed settlement because it doesn’t do enough to fund addiction science, treatment and prevention.

“The damage caused by the Sacklers and Purdue Pharma far exceeds what they have put on the table,” Tong said in a statement. “ And what they have taken out of the company, far exceeds what they have put on the table. We need to claw back billions of dollars and make sure that goes to victims and their families.”

The process has been complicated by Purdue Pharma declaring bankruptcy, which is something attorney general offices had seen coming.

“This is yet another cynical maneuver to try to shirk responsibility, but it is not without risks for them,” Tong said. “Purdue and the Sacklers cannot cry poverty while stashing billions overseas. We will move aggressively in bankruptcy to disclose their hidden fortune and ensure their full wealth is now on the table.”

What the payout from any of the defendants will ultimately be and how many separate and consolidated cases it will involve remains unknown.

Based on a formula created by the attorneys representing the plaintiffs, though, any cities and counties that choose to participate in the newly certified settlement process would receive a payout based on how much harm they suffered at the expense of the opioid crisis.

Of every hypothetical $1 billion that is part of a settlement, here’s the estimated share that your county would receive would receive:

Fairfield County: $2.05 million
New Haven County: $2.94 million
Litchfield County: $589,000
Hartford County: $2.42 million
Middlesex County: $498,000
Windham County: $377,000
New London County: $891,000

Read more about the settlement process.