Kelly Hayes
Walgreens will pay a $680 million settlement after the state took the drugstore to trial for its role in the opioid crisis, concluding the state’s legal crusade against companies involved in fueling the epidemic, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody announced Thursday in Tampa.
Moody called the victory “historic,” making Florida the first in the country to successfully conclude litigation against opioid manufacturers, distributors and pharmacies. Walgreens was the 12th and final defendant in the state’s case to hold companies accountable for fueling the crisis, Moody said.
“This is a promise kept to our citizens,” Moody said. “As a prosecutor and as a judge, seeing the devastation firsthand I resigned to be an active player and make sure that redress was afforded to our state and our citizens. I now stand before you today to say we have successfully accomplished this mission.”
The settlement from Walgreens brings the total funds secured via the state’s litigation efforts to more than $3 billion, Moody said. That money will be paid out over the next 20 years, and will be distributed by the state to help address the opioid crisis.
“The funds will go to communities hit hardest by opioid abuse and they will be spent on treatment and prevention. The funds will undoubtedly save the lives of Floridians,” Moody said. “This is indeed a historic day for Florida, for those struggling with addiction and for the communities that are suffering the effects of this nationwide crisis. I am glad we have been able to end this monumental litigation.”
The settlement comes after a four-week court battle in Pasco County, in which Florida attorneys fought to prove the integral part the drugstore giant played in the state’s opioid epidemic.
The case provided examples of excessive distribution by the drugstore. In one scenario, a Hudson Walgreens outlet sold 2.2 million opioid tablets in a town with about 12,000 residents. Other Walgreens locations, according to the state, increased their orders for opioids by 600% in a two-year period.
“As tough as this journey has been it is not overnight, there is still work to be done,” Moody said. “We now go into battle armed and ready to fight back hard against this manmade crisis. And we do it in unison with the more than 200 cities and counties that have stepped up to support and benefit from our litigation efforts.”
The most recent estimate shows Florida continues to lose 21 lives a day to opioid abuse, she said. And, a record 100,000 Americans overdosed and died from drug use in the past year.
“Please know that the battle that we have waged has not just been in the courtroom,” Moody said. “It will continue to live on in our streets, within families within an individual life that is suffering from addiction. But I am hopeful that moving forward we can begin to turn the tide of this crisis and change lives and our state forever.”
