AG Morrisey announces plan for opioid settlement funds
Formula created for distributing future opioid litigation settlement
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CHARLESTON -- West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey announced Wednesday a tentative agreement with representatives of cities and counties in the state for distributing future opioid settlement dollars.
During a press conference at the Attorney General's Office in the Capitol, Morrisey announced a memorandum of understanding reached with attorneys and representatives of cities and counties on a formula for distributing future opioid litigation settlements and the creation of a new state non-profit that also will receive settlement funds.
"This is an opportunity to truly put West Virginia first," Morrisey said. "I'm excited to bring this together for you, because the opioid epidemic is one of the challenges of our time here in West Virginia."
The West Virginia First program, which still has to be approved by elected city and county officials, would divide future settlements, with 24.5% going to cities and counties, 3% going to the Attorney General's Office, and 72.5% going to the Opioid Foundation, a non-profit that would be set up by the Attorney General's Office.
Once funding from future settlements are distributed, the funds can be used by cities and counties for developing programs for substance abuse avoidance, research, and education; funding for law enforcement to combat the sale and distribution of drugs; and substance abuse treatment and recovery.
The agreement would only apply to future opioid settlements and it would not apply to the case brought by Cabell County and the city of Huntington against AmerisourceBergen Drug Co., Cardinal Health Inc. and McKesson Corp. Closing arguments in that case took place nearly seven months ago. More than $2.5 billion is being sought in that case.
Fifty-four of 55 counties are in litigation with opioid manufacturers and distributors along with nearly a dozen cities and towns. Morrisey said the Attorney General's Office has been working on the memorandum of understanding since the state's mass litigation panel ordered him to come up with a distribution plan five months ago.
"It's a big step forward," Morrisey said. "It's not always easy to get 54 counties and many cities on the same page, but we tried to be diligent. We met multiple times per week. We tried to pour as much time as humanly possible leading the negotiations on the state-side. I think we have something really, really powerful."
Morrisey was joined Wednesday by Huntington Mayor Steve Williams. Cabell County was second out of 55 counties in opioid overdose deaths in 2020 with 139 deaths.
"We're getting to the point where we know that a settlement can be accomplished. It's a matter of getting to yes," Williams said. "One thing that is critical for the state and the localities is to have an abatement program in place so we can make sure this never ever happens again in West Virginia. We've been on the frontline in Huntington, but every community in this state has been impacted by this."
Morrisey said he is also seeking support from the West Virginia Legislature and Gov. Jim Justice for the distribution plan. The Attorney General's Office has a trial coming up on April 4, against Teva Pharmaceuticals Inc., Johnson and Johnson and subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Endo Health Solutions Inc.
The Opioid Foundation would consist of 11 members, with five members being appointed by Gov. Jim Justice and six members representing local governments and regions. The executive director would be appointed by the attorney general, though the foundation's board could reject the attorney general's selection. The foundation would be seeded with $10 million obtained by the Attorney General's Office from the 2021 McKinsey and Company settlement.
According to preliminary data from the state Department of Health and Human Resource's Office of Drug Control Policy, approximately 932 West Virginians have died from drug overdoses in 2021, with most of those deaths attributed to opioids.
"There's been a lot of senseless death over many, many years. And there's been a lot of noble efforts to try to make changes to improve the health and wellbeing of so many West Virginians," Morrisey said. "I'm hopeful today's announcement represents a very big step forward in the fight against this terrible epidemic."
(Adams can be contacted at sadams@newsandsentinel.com)