opioid settlements

Memorial for opiod overdose victims of Broome County, New York

We checked up on the states that promise transparency on opioid settlement funds

5:00am November 07, 2024

Victims of the opioid crisis, health advocates, and policy experts have called on state and local governments to clearly report how they’re using the funds they are receiving from settlements with opioid companies.

Local representatives gather in Beckley, W.Va., to select a regional representative for the nonprofit council that will be responsible for distributing funds from the state's opioid settlement. Around the country, state councils like this will decide how to spend $50 billion in opioid settlement funds.

Here's who controls the $50 billion opioid settlement funds in each state

5:00am July 10, 2023

by Aneri Pattani

As money is funneled to states, opioid councils wield significant power in determining how it gets spent. They face concerns about conflicts of interest and lack of representation by affected groups.

Public art in Altoona, Penn., one of many cities hit hard by the opioid epidemic. Marianne Sinisi organized the installation after her son died of an overdose. State and local governments have received about $3 billion so far out of $50 billion total in settlements from national lawsuits.

Opioid settlement payouts are now public — and we know how much local governments got

5:30am June 16, 2023

by Aneri Pattani

KFF Health News obtained documents showing the exact dollar amounts — down to the cent — that local governments have been paid in 2022 and 2023 in lawsuit settlements from the opioid crisis.

States filed lawsuits against corporations involved in the opioid crisis. Now, about $50 billion in settlement funds have begun to flow to state governments. Advocates want to make sure it is used to treat addiction.

Health & Safety

Biden promised a watchdog for opioid settlement billions, but feds are quiet so far

3:16pm April 20, 2023

by Aneri Pattani

Billions of dollars are headed to state and local governments to address the opioid crisis. If the federal government fails to oversee how the money is spent, advocates worry it will be wasted.

Marianne Sinisi, of Altoona, Pennsylvania, lost her 26-year-old son, Shawn, to an opioid overdose in 2018. She wants the opioid settlement dollars to be spent in ways that help spare other parents similar grief.

As states start to get opioid settlement cash, few are sharing how they spend it

5:01am March 30, 2023

by Aneri Pattani

All told, drugmakers and distributors will pay over $50 billion to communities harmed by opioids. An investigation finds that only a dozen states are letting the public see how they use the money.