DALLAS (WBAP/KLIF) – Dallas County Commissioners voted on Wednesday to approve the allocation of $2.3 million following a settlement between the State of Texas and pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson.
The settlement comes as marketing practices across the pharmaceutical industry is blamed for a jump in prescription drug overdoses.
“Dallas County, like so many communities throughout Texas, has been hard hit by an opioid epidemic that was caused and fueled by drug company misconduct,” Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said.” Through this settlement, which is the best of its kind in the nation, one of those companies, Johnson & Johnson, has been held to financially account for its role in this crisis. Dallas County, its trial counsel, and the Office of the Attorney General have worked together to achieve this historic result that benefits tens of millions of Texans by promptly putting monies for opioid harm reduction into communities that sorely need it.”
On Wednesday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced a $290 million statewide opioid settlement agreement with the company to resolve opioid-related claims.
According to the settlement, Johnson & Johnson has agreed to pay $291,841,754.89 into the Qualified Settlement Fund, representing Texas’s allocation of the Global Abatement Settlement.
“I am pleased that all parties have reached final agreement on this monumental settlement. This is the next step to bring much-needed funding for Texans who have fallen victim to the irresponsible and deceptive marketing practices from opioid manufacturers that spurred this epidemic,” Paxton said. “My office will continue to aggressively work to hold those accountable for causing this crisis. These funds will bring life-changing resources to those victimized by this tragic crisis.”
Paxton said that in addition to the funds from Johnson & Johnson, Texas is also slated to receive up to $1.2 billion from the three distributors, which would bring to Texas up to $1.5 billion in funding for statewide opioid abatement efforts.
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