By Forum Staff
Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday announced the City’s commitment to participate in a new proposed settlement with Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family that would bring approximately $48 million to the five boroughs.
The settlement is the result of litigation brought, beginning in 2017, by the City, numerous state attorneys general, and several thousand subdivisions across the country to address the harms caused by the opioid crises. The total settlement amount is expected to be approximately $7.4 billion, including $4.5 billion for state and local governments, of which approximately $48 million will go to the City of New York. The settlement would combine an agreement with certain members of the Sackler family to pay $6.5 billion and an anticipated contribution from the bankruptcy estate of Purdue Pharma, expected to be $900 million pending approval from the bankruptcy court on the proposed bankruptcy plan later this fall. Purdue Pharma and certain members of the Sackler family were at the heart of a scheme to misleadingly market prescription opioids as safe and effective for long-term chronic pain management, contributing greatly to the nationwide opioid crisis.
“The opioid crisis stole thousands of lives, tore apart countless communities, and devastated families across our city and the rest of the nation, and while nothing can replace all that we lost, we will never stop fighting until we bring justice to communities devastated by this crisis,” said Mayor Adams. “At the heart of the scheme to hook Americans on opioids were the Sackler family and their company, Purdue Pharma, and the potential for this $7.4 billion settlement will serve as an example of how New Yorkers can trust us to always hold those with power accountable when they break the law and harm our citizens. I thank Corporation Counsel Goode-Trufant and the Law Department for their role in this settlement and for helping to ensure we do what we can to help make New Yorkers whole again.”
“This settlement will represent a major milestone in the city’s longstanding legal effort to hold manufacturers and distributors of prescription opioids accountable for their role in the city’s deadly opioid epidemic,” added City Corporation Counsel Muriel Goode-Trufant. “The opioid crisis resulted in a tremendous human and financial cost to the City. This $48 million settlement adds to the hundreds of millions of dollars we have already worked to recover from irresponsible drug companies. I commend all the dedicated individuals on the city’s legal team for their work in bringing about this outstanding result.”
According to the administration, ongoing funds from opioid settlements have supported new and expanded activities at the City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, NYC Health + Hospitals, and the City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner that collectively aim to reduce opioid overdose deaths through harm reduction, preventive, and treatment strategies.
Recently, Adams announced the third quarter of 2024 saw the lowest number of overdose deaths in New York City in a single quarter since 2020. In 2023, NYC saw a slight decline in overdose deaths for the first time since 2018.
