Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. said it had agreed to pay more than $4 billion to resolve thousands of lawsuits filed against the drugmaker by state and local governments over its highly addictive opioid painkillers.
The Israeli drugmaker said Tuesday it reached a tentative deal to pay $3 billion in cash and $1.2 billion in donated overdose-fighting drug Narcan to resolve the claims. Native American tribes would also receive $100 million. The company said the total included $650 million it’s had committed in previous settlements. The deal would be paid out over 13 years, if finalized.
Teva Chief Executive Officer Kare Schultz said in a statement the company was “pleased to have reached a nationwide agreement in principle, pending participation by states and subdivisions, to resolve the majority of our costly legacy opioids litigation, and importantly, make critical medicines available to those most impacted by the U.S. opioid epidemic.”
