North Carolina will receive almost one hundred and fifty million dollars to address the opioid epidemic.
Attorney General Jeff Jackson said the funds are coming as part of a nationwide settlement between every attorney general, OxyContin manufacturer Purdue Pharma, and previous owners the Sackler family.
Jackson said that combined with previous opioid settlements, North Carolina will receive more than one and a half billion dollars for opioid treatment programs.
“We’re now up to one point six billion dollars that will be coming to North Carolina," he said. "The vast majority of it will be hitting in the next three years, and the vast majority of that is designed by the terms of the agreement to go downstream into local communities to help fight addiction and break the cycle of addiction.”
Local governments still need to sign onto the agreement to ensure that North Carolina receives its full share, but Jackson says he is optimistic that will happen.
The United States Supreme Court struck down a previous agreement because it would have shielded the Sacklers from civil lawsuits. The new agreement lets those suits move forward.