Every Minnesota county and more than 140 cities have signed onto a massive opioid settlement that could net local governments millions of dollars to spend on treatment centers, education campaigns and other programs to address the public health crisis.
The proposed agreement would resolve lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson and drug distributors Cardinal Health, AmerisourceBergen and McKesson, which are among the richest companies accused of fueling the opioid epidemic with irresponsible marketing and inadequate monitoring.
Minnesota could see $296 million of the $26 billion that would be paid out over 18 years to states and local governments across the country, including more than 6,000 that had signed onto the settlement by the Wednesday deadline, according to Reuters.