Attorney John Young talks to the St. Martin Parish Council about the settlement in a multi-government lawsuit against makes and distributors of opioid medication.
The Daily Review/Bill Decker
Parish government signs on to opioid lawsuit settlement
FRANKLIN -- The St. Mary Parish Council on Wednesday signed on to a propsoed settlement in a lwasuit accusing a leading drug-maker of contributing to the opioid epidemic.
St. Mary is one of multiple local governments that sued Johnson & Johnson and three of its distributors.
The lawsuit alleges that marketing by J&J and the distributors contributed to an epidemic of opioid abuse.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the epidemic has killed 500,000. State and local governments hope to recover money spent to combat the rise in opioid abuse.
Under the settlement, Johnson & Johnson would contribute $1 billion and the distributors a total of $25 million.
Parish Council legal counsel Eric Duplantis said the amount St. Mary Parish will receive will depend on a complicated matrix of factors developed during the lawsuit and on how many governments take part in the settlement.