Brief History of the $26 Billion Settlement

Brief History of the $26 Billion Settlement

Nationwide settlement between states and opioid manufacturer Johnson & Johnson ($5 billion) and the "big three" distributers McKesson, Amerisource Bergen and Cardinal Health ($21 billion)

• June 2021  
  To resolve their liabilities in 3,000+ lawsuits nationwide, defendants offer a $26 billion settlement. Participating states are entitled to about half of the offered (base) payout. To unlock the full amount, states must convince counties and cities to surrender individual suits and join their state agreements.
• August 2021  
  Deadline: 46 states confirm participation in the litigation. 
• January 2022  
  Deadline: 90% of eligible counties, cities surrender individual suits and join their state agreements, nearly doubling the base payout. 
• February 2022  
  Defendants agree plaintiffs have reached a critical mass, finalize the $26 billion settlement.
• May 2022  
  Payment process initiated in some states 
• September 2022  
  First year payments received in a majority of states.

Download Timeline Graphic

What comes next? 

• Depending on the individual agreements, settlement funds will be distributed over 18 years, but are largely front loaded. 
• Some states and local governments are moving forward with lawsuits against retailers while other are finalizing lawsuits against other manufacturers.

Settlements Tracker

What other settlements should I know about?

The second largest settlement reached to date is the up to $6 billion settlement from Purdue Pharma. This settlement was reached between 48 states and Purdue Pharma in March 2022. However, this settlement is currently on appeal in federal court. To track the progress of the Purdue settlement and several smaller nationwide lawsuits, view the Global Settlement Tracker on OpioidSettlementTracker.com.

Access The Global Settlement Tracker