Teva settles opioid suit for $85M

May 27, 2019

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries will pay $85 million to settle a lawsuit brought by the state of Oklahoma alleging that the company aggressively marketed its opioid products. 

Teva has long maintained that it does not market the generic opioids that the company and its subsidiaries produce, and that it did not contribute to the ongoing opioid epidemic in the state. But Teva indicated that it was eager to put the lawsuit, one of thousands being levied against opioid-makers, to bed, and admitted no wrongdoing as part of the settlement. 

Oklahoma has already reached a $270 million settlement with Purdue Pharma and is still pursuing a case against Johnson & Johnson. The state has accused the companies of downplaying the risks of addiction associated with opioids. 

Read the full Wall Street Journal report.