Sacklers To Pay Up To $6 Billion To Resolve Purdue Opioid Lawsuits - Mediator

The Sackler family owners of Purdue Pharma LP reached a deal with nine state attorneys general to pay up to $6 billion in cash to resolve widespread litigation alleging that they fueled the U.S. opioid epidemic, bringing the OxyContin maker closer to exiting bankruptcy.

The deal was revealed on Thursday in a court filing by a mediator who oversaw renewed talks between the Sacklers and the states that had blocked a previous settlement that included a $4.3 billion cash payment.

The family agreed to pay at least $5.5 billion in cash, which will be used for abating a crisis that has led to nearly 500,000 opioid overdose deaths over two decades.

The Sackler family owners said in a statement that they "sincerely regret" that OxyContin "unexpectedly became part of an opioid crisis."

The family members said they acted lawfully but a settlement was by far the best way to help resolve a "serious and complex public health crisis."

The deal must still be approved by a judge.

The value of the deal could grow as the family members sell addition assets.

The settlement also included non-economic terms including an agreement to allow institutions such as museums to remove the Sackler name from facilities.

Purdue filed for bankruptcy in 2019 in the face of thousands of lawsuits accusing it and members of the Sackler family of fueling the opioid epidemic through deceptive marketing of its highly addictive pain medicine.

The company pleaded guilty to misbranding and fraud charges related to its marketing of OxyContin in 2007 and 2020. Members of the Sackler family have denied wrongdoing.

The deal was announced two months after a judge upended the earlier settlement with the lower proposed Sackler family cash contribution to Purdue's reorganization plan. In exchange, the Sacklers had received legal protections known as nondebtor releases.

Eight states and the District of Columbia opposed that plan. Under Thursday's settlement, $276 million of the increased Sackler contribution will be dedicated to those states and the District of Columbia.

As part of the new settlement, the states agreed to stop fighting Purdue's effort to protect the Sacklers from future opioid lawsuits.

There is currently a legal shield in place that prevents the Sacklers from being the target of current and future suits. A bankruptcy judge extended that shield on Wednesday until March 23, and Purdue is seeking to make that protection permanent.

Purdue now has agreements in place with all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, but those agreements must be approved by the bankruptcy court. The states that previously opposed the restructuring were California, Purdue's home state of Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.