Corporate opioid payouts now being finalized would top $32 billion

https://www.npr.org/2022/02/23/ [login to see] /corporate-opioid-payouts-would-top-32-billion
Over the next two weeks, some of the biggest U.S. corporations accused of "turbocharging" the opioid epidemic could finalize payouts to victims and governments worth roughly $32 billion.

"We've lost more than a million Americans to this epidemic, and sadly, it's at an all-time high as overdose deaths continue to rise," said Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton last week, in a statement announcing his state is now in line to receive roughly $1.1 billion.

Paxton said pharmaceutical companies that made, distributed and sold opioids were "at the root of the problem." Their payments will help fund "treatment for those currently still struggling with opioid addiction," he added.