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Attorney General Todd Rokita announced Monday that Indiana is expected to receive another $16.5 million as part of a multi-state opioid settlement.
In a news release, Rokita said the latest opioid-related settlement is the 11th reached by the state, with Indiana receiving more than $1 billion in funds since 2021.
This settlement names eight drug manufacturers as defendants: Alvogen, Amneal, Apotex, Hikma, Mylan (now part of Viatris), Sun and Zydus.
Indiana joins several other states that will be receiving funds as part of a $720 million national opioid settlement with the manufacturers.
Under the settlement, some companies will pay states over several years, while others must pay their part in a single year.
The injuctive relief terms in each of the manufacturers’ settlements include: being prohibited from promoting opioids or opioids products, rewarding or disciplining employees based on the number of opioids sold, manufacturing, promoting or distributing any product containing more than 40mg of oxycodone per pill, discounting opioid products in most circumstances, lobbying or paying others to lobby about opioids.
“Thousands of Hoosiers have lost their lives as a result of the opioid crisis,” Rokita said in a released statement. “We can never undo that tragic loss of life, but we can hold accountable those responsible for contributing to the situations culminating in these deaths. That’s what these settlements are all about, and I’m proud of the work of our team.”
Based on the Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) most recent data, in 2022, Indiana had the 13th highest drug overdose mortality rate in the U.S., at 41, two points lower than the year prior.
On a national scale, the estimated synthetic opioids deaths for 2024 are projected to reach their lowest annual level since 2019 at just over 48,422—a 37% decrease from the 2023 estimated synthetic opioids deaths, according to the CDC.
According to Rokita’s office, the rate of opioid prescriptions in Indiana peaked in 2012 when, on average, there were 112 opioid prescriptions for every 100 Hoosiers.
From 2012 through 2016, 58 counties had opioid prescribing rates greater than 100 prescriptions per 100 residents.
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