In the latest in a long series of pharma opioid settlements, Teva and AbbVie’s Allergan unit have reached a deal with the hard-hit state of West Virginia. Under the deal, which totals $161 million in cash and drugs, Teva will supply the state with $27 million in overdose reversal drug Narcan.
The deal comes after a trial centered on the state’s claims that the manufactures helped fuel West Virginia’s opioid epidemic by engaging in “strategic campaigns” to deceive prescribers and misrepresent the risks and benefits of the painkillers. The trial included 54 witnesses and approximately 630 evidence documents.
Under the deal, Teva will pay $83 million—including $8 million in attorney fees—and $27 million in Narcan. Allergan is set to pay the remaining $51 million.
The companies will distribute the cash over 10 years. The cash value is “by far, the highest per capita settlement in the nation,” West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey said in a statement.
Teva said that the settlement is “another critical step forward in getting life-saving treatments to people suffering from addition to opioids” and is not an admission of any liability or wrongdoing.
Teva and Allergan’s settlement comes a month after Johnson & Johnson agreed to fork over $99 million to the state to remove itself from opioid litigation there.
Meanwhile, Teva and Allergan are considering paying more than $5 billion to resolve over 3,500 lawsuits regarding their opioid sales, Bloomberg reported a few weeks ago.
