Purdue Pharma Reaches $8.34 Billion Settlement Over Opioid Probes

Purdue Pharma LP agreed to plead guilty to three felonies related to its marketing and distribution of powerful painkiller OxyContin, as part of an $8.34 billion settlement that caps yearslong federal investigations into tactics the government said helped fuel the opioid crisis.

The Justice Department unveiled the settlement Wednesday, alongside a deal with Purdue's owners, members of the Sackler family. The price tag for Purdue, however, is largely symbolic: The bankrupt company's assets fall well short of $8 billion. It will pay the federal government $225 million, and much of the rest of the fines will be waived to allow more money to flow to states, counties and tribes that accuse Purdue of sparking widespread opioid addiction and deaths.

The Sacklers, meanwhile, resolved civil charges for a separate $225 million, but prosecutors made clear criminal investigations into the family continue.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/purdue-pharma-reaches-8-34-billion-settlement-over-opioid-probes-11603292613