The company manufactured the pain-relieving and highly addictive drug that led to an opioid epidemic primarily in the USA.
An American appeals court decided in 2023 that the Sackler family would receive full immunity from civil lawsuits in exchange for paying approximately 60 billion kronor to handle the consequences of the opioid epidemic. In June last year, the decision was overturned by the US Supreme Court.
Now, New York State Attorney General Letitia James announces that an agreement involving multiple states has been reached, where the Sackler family will pay $6.5 billion over 15 years and relinquish ownership of Purdue. The company Purdue Pharma will account for $900 million.
The deal is still awaiting court approval, and not all details have been made public yet.
Hundreds of thousands of people have lost their lives in the opioid crisis, and several million Americans are estimated to be addicted to opioids.
