PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Washington will receive $62.6 million in a multistate opioid settlement with major retailer Walmart.
Last December, Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced that he would join the settlement in an effort to combat the state’s drug crisis — a crisis that Walmart has been accused of contributing to by offering opioids at its pharmacies.
On Thursday, the attorney general notified the public that the multi-million-dollar settlement would be distributed across state, city and county agencies in Washington.
“This is real money that funds real resources that will save lives,” Ferguson said in a statement. “But I am not done here. My office still litigates active cases, which we will use to hold all companies that fueled the opioid epidemic accountable. My team is working to bring even more money and resources back to affected Washington communities.”
The Walmart settlement totals $3.1 billion and involves all 50 states. The corporation has also been ordered to closely monitor its pharmacies so patients are restricted from having multiple opioid prescriptions.
However, Walmart isn’t the only company that has agreed to pay billions of dollars to state governments due to its suspected role in the drug crisis.
Drug manufacturers Teva and Allergan, and pharmacies CVS and Walgreens submitted their final payments from their own opioid settlements earlier this summer.
As part of the settlement, Teva was banned from promoting opioids and Allergan was banned from selling them for the next 10 years. CVS and Walgreens were also advised to monitor their pharmacies for “suspicious activity related to opioid prescriptions.”
In total, Washington has received $1.1 billion from 11 companies that are considered liable for the drug crisis.
“The Attorney General’s Office has upcoming trials against one opioid manufacturer and multiple pharmacies that helped fuel the epidemic,” Washington officials said.
