KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – The Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners has joined the City of Kalamazoo in a request for a share of the first federal opioid settlement money.
Opioid manufacturers and distributors were sued for underplaying the addictive and deadly side effects of the drugs, which have now killed as many as 800,000.
Attorney Lisa Esser says Kalamazoo County could gain over six million dollars in this first round of settlements against three major drug distributors and Johnson and Johnson.
Esser says there are lawsuits still pending against Perdue, as well as other drug makers and distributors that could result in additional funding for the county and other jurisdictions. The money would be paid out to the defendants over the next 18 years, and would have to be used to fund opioid remediation.
Local jurisdictions have until January 2, 2022 to claim their share of the $26-billion dollars the drug firms have agreed to pay to avoid defending themselves in court.
It could be the most expensive consumer lawsuit in U.S. history.
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