NC Attorney General Josh Stein helped negotiate more than $50 billion in national settlements and bankruptcy resolutions with opioid companies, agreements that are helping to bring desperately needed resources to communities harmed by the opioid overdose epidemic. The agreements resolve litigation over the role of companies in creating and fueling the opioid overdose epidemic, and they require significant industry changes that will help prevent this type of crisis from ever happening again.
The Wave One Settlements, Wave Two Settlements, Kroger Settlement, and bankruptcy resolutions described below have the potential to bring roughly $1.4 billion to North Carolina state and local governments to address the opioid overdose epidemic from 2022 through 2038.
The Wave One Settlements resolved litigation that many state and local governments brought for opioid-related misconduct against three drug distributors – Cardinal, McKesson, and AmerisourceBergen (renamed Cencora in 2023) – along with the drug maker Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and its subsidiary Janssen. Read the Distributor and J&J settlements, the NC Distributor Consent Judgment, and the NC J&J Consent Judgement.
The Wave Two Settlements resolved litigation that many state and local governments brought for opioid-related misconduct against three retail pharmacy chains – CVS, Walmart, and Walgreens – as well as the drug makers Allergan and Teva. Read the CVS, Walgreens & Walmart Settlements, Teva & Allergan Settlements, NC CVS Consent Judgment, NC Walgreens Consent Judgment, NC Walmart Consent Judgment, NC Teva Consent Judgment, and NC Allergan Consent Judgment.
The Kroger Settlement resolved litigation that many state and local governments brought against Kroger for opioid-related misconduct. The settlement covers North Carolina and other states where Kroger operates under its own name or the name of a subsidiary (such as Harris Teeter in North Carolina). Read the Kroger Settlement and the NC Kroger Consent Judgment.
The Mallinckrodt bankruptcy: As a result of the bankruptcy reorganization plan approved in 2022, the drug maker Mallinckrodt was required to pay approximately $10.8 million to address the opioid overdose crisis in North Carolina. These payments were made to NC state and local governments in January and November of 2022.
The Endo bankruptcy: As a result of the bankruptcy reorganization plan approved in April of 2024, the drug maker Endo paid approximately $10.7 million to help address the opioid crisis in North Carolina. This payment occurred in October 2024.
The Purdue Bankruptcy: A bankruptcy plan involving the drug maker Purdue Pharma and its owners (the Sackler family) was rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court in June of 2024. The original plan would have brought an estimated $100 million to North Carolina to address the opioid overdose epidemic. Discussions about a new plan are underway.
McKinsey Cases: In 2021, NC Attorney General Josh Stein announced a $573 million multi-state settlement with McKinsey & Company, resolving investigations into the company’s role in advising opioid companies. The settlement provides nearly $19 million over five years for the state, with all funds appropriated by the NC General Assembly to address the opioid overdose epidemic. Read the press release. A separate class-action lawsuit against McKinsey resulted in payments to some local governments in 2024. The McKinsey cases are NOT subject to the terms of the North Carolina Memorandum of Agreement (NC MOA), and any local government that received any payment from the McKinsey class action should NOT deposit the payment in the special revenue fund governed by the MOA.
Publicis Case: In early 2024, NC Attorney General Josh Stein announced a $350 million multi-state settlement with Publicis Health to resolve investigations into the firm’s role in advising opioid companies. The settlement provides more than $11 million for the state, with all funds appropriated by the NC General Assembly to address the opioid overdose epidemic. Read the press release.
Legal Documents Take Precedence. If there is a discrepancy between anything you read on this website and any of the underlying legal documents discussed here – including the national opioid settlements and bankruptcy resolutions discussed above – the terms of the underlying legal documents always take precedence.
