Covid vaccine developer J&J set to pay huge settlement for fuelling opioid crisis

Covid vaccine developer J&J and drug distributors set to pay huge settlement for fuelling the opioid crisis in Native American tribes.

COVID vaccine developer J&J and three major US drug manufacturers and distributors are set to pay out a huge settlement after being accused of fuelling the opioid crisis in Native American tribes. This comes a week after J&J agreed to pay an even bigger settlement to resolve thousands of similar lawsuits in the US.
The native tribes, represented by the Tribal Leadership Community, told a court on Tuesday, February 1 how Johnson & Johnson had understated the addiction risks of opioids in their marketing campaigns. They accused the distributors of letting addictive painkillers be diverted into illegal channels, according to court filings.
The number of deaths from opioid overdoses has increased for many years in the US, but according to CDC data, the problem has been growing disproportionately among Native Americans and Alaska Natives in recent years.
As a result, J&J, who are behind the Janssen one-shot Covid vaccine, has agreed to pay $150 million (€131 million) over two years, while Cardinal Health, AmerisourceBergen Corp., and McKesson Corp have agreed to pay more than $439 million (€384 million) in settlement over seven years.
The Tribal Leadership Community stated in court filings that tribal governments have had to spend “considerable tribal funds to cover the costs of the opioid crisis” including costs for “health care, social services, child welfare, law enforcement, and other government services” which has imposed “severe financial burdens” on the plaintiffs.
“We’re not solving the opioid crisis with the settlement, but we are getting critical resources to tribal communities to address the crisis,” stated Steven Skikos, a lawyer for the tribes, in a telephonic court hearing, according to Reuters.
“This is an historic settlement that goes a small but important distance toward addressing a killing epidemic that devastated tribal communities,” said Lloyd Miller, one of the lead tribal attorneys on the case who represents 120 tribes. “It is historic because at long last Tribes and States are standing shoulder to shoulder in addressing mass disasters.”
All 574 federally recognised tribes will be able to receive money from the settlements even if they had not filed the lawsuits, according to Tara Sutton, an attorney for the tribes, in a Feb. 1 statement to The Wall Street Journal.
Speaking to Reuters, J&J officials said in a statement that it did not admit wrongdoing in the settlement and that the company was “appropriate and responsible” in its role of promoting opioid pain relief prescription medications.
The settlement comes a week after 44 US states agreed to a $26 billion (€23 billion) settlement proposed by J&J and three major drug distributors to resolve thousands of similar lawsuits accusing the companies of fueling the opioid epidemic.

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