COLUMBUS – Ohio is expected to receive more than $114 million for treatment and recovery services as part of a pending $3.1 billion settlement between Walmart and 43 states stemming from the opioid crisis that has been linked to more than 500,000 deaths over the past two decades in the U.S.
The states sued the retail giant over the impact of the prescriptions its pharmacies filled for opioid painkillers.
It follows a similar announcement from pharmacy chains CVS Health and Walgreen Co., who each said they would pay about $5 billion over time to settle suits they face.
Major drugmakers and distributors have already announced, and in some cases, finalized settlements.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and 15 other attorneys general served on a team of negotiators that worked out the preliminary deal, which stems from what Yost calls Walmart’s “failure to properly oversee the dispensing of opioids from its roughly 5,000 pharmacies nationwide.”
As part of the settlement, the retail giant would also be required to make robust improvements in the oversight of its pharmacies.
The state, county and local governments are poised to receive more than $1 billion for treatment, recovery and drug abuse prevention efforts from settlements with other opioid distributors, including Cardinal Health, McKesson, AmerisourceBergen, Johnson & Johnson, Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. and McKinsey & Co., Yost said.
A minimum of 43 states are required to approve the agreement by the end of the year and local governments will then have the first quarter of 2023 to join, Yost said.