Baltimore all ears as rumors circulate about deal with opioid manufacturer

By Heather Cobun
HCobun@TheDailyRecord.com

State attorneys general and lawyers representing local governments said they were in negotiations with Purdue Pharma, maker of the prescription painkiller OxyContin, as they attempt to reach a landmark settlement over the nation's opioid crisis. (AP PHOTO / TOBY TALBOT)

Baltimore is closely monitoring settlement talks between state and local governments and Purdue Pharma and its owners, the city’s top attorney said Wednesday.

The maker of OxyContin is reportedly negotiating a $10 billion to $12 billion settlement, which would involve the Sackler family giving up ownership of the company and a Chapter 11 bankruptcy to transform the business into a “public beneficiary trust.” All drug sale profits would go to the plaintiffs under the trust.

Baltimore City Solicitor Andre M. Davis said his office and its co-counsel were “waiting and paying attention” to the talks. The city is suing Purdue and others in Baltimore City Circuit Court and is not part of federal multidistrict litigation (MDL), which is being overseen by U.S. District Judge Daniel Polster in Ohio, where the settlement talks originated.

“Judge Polster has been just remarkably aggressive at making clear that he wants these cases in the MDL resolved sooner rather than later,” Davis said. “There’s ample motivation on both sides to try to get something done.”

A deputy county attorney for Anne Arundel County, which is also litigating its case in state court, declined to comment Wednesday.

In a statement, Purdue did not confirm any of the details of a potential settlement — which were reported by NBC and The New York Times — but said it sees little good in years of "wasteful litigation and appeals."

"Purdue believes a constructive global resolution is the best path forward, and the company is actively working with the state attorneys general and other plaintiffs to achieve this outcome," it said.

Most Maryland counties and nearly two dozen cities have filed lawsuits in the last two years accusing Purdue and other manufacturers, as well as distributors of prescription opioids, of conducting a campaign of misinformation that persuaded doctors and the public that the drugs were safe and that the risk of addiction was low.

Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh filed an administrative action against the Sackler family and Purdue in May accusing them of unfair and deceptive trade practice. A spokeswoman for Frosh declined to comment on the settlement rumors Wednesday.

Davis said he expected Purdue would want to pursue a settlement that would resolve all of its litigation across the country.

“They’re going to want everybody in the tent -- as many entities, as many plaintiffs in the tent as possible,” he said.

Davis also said he expected any final settlement to take months and possibly more than a year.
“Settlement in this case will not be an event; it’s going to be a process,” he said, not ruling out objections and appeals.

He added that a settlement with Purdue -- which has become the face of opioid manufacturing though it is not the only manufacturer -- would put pressure on the other defendants to “join the party.”

On Monday, an Oklahoma judge found Johnson & Johnson responsible for fueling that state's opioid crisis and ordered the maker of such familiar household products as Band-Aids and baby powder to pay $572 million to help clean up the problem. Davis called the judgment a “signpost” for future proceedings and potential settlements.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.