Baltimore has settled with pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson over its role in the opioid epidemic ahead of a trial scheduled to begin on Monday.
City officials and a company representative confirmed on Monday morning a deal had been reached but, unlike previous settlements, the parties declined to provide additional details. Still, the undisclosed amount of money will come on top of the $402.5 million the city is already slated to receive from previous settlements this year.
"I can confirm the City settled with Johnson & Johnson," city spokesman Bryan Doherty said in a statement. "The City cannot at this time discuss any of the specific terms of the settlement."
Johnson & Johnson initially was part of a larger lawsuit against opioid distributors and manufacturers going to trial on Monday.
With the company settling beforehand, the city has reached deals with five entities heading into the trial with remaining defendants McKesson and Cencora, formerly called AmerisourceBergen.
Last week, the city announced it had reached settlements totaling $160 million with Walgreens and Teva Pharmaceuticals, which also were originally defendants in the upcoming trial.
Baltimore has accused the companies of recklessly pedaling opioids in the city, creating an epidemic that has left Baltimore with the highest fatal overdose rate in the nation.
So far, the city has earmarked $72 million from settlements to fund local harm reduction initiatives and related programs. Anything not stipulated by the agreements will be disbursed through a new governance structure that Scott unveiled earlier this month.
The executive order creating the structure laid out the governance structure in seven phases:
- Establish an opioid restitution fund and outline appropriate uses, which include programs and services that work toward substance abuse prevention; treatment; recovery; and harm reduction.
- Use the funds to establish a trust that will be spent over the period of at least 15 years.
- Create "key documentation" to ensure spending is aligned with the interests of the community, including a comprehensive overdose prevention strategy and substance use community needs assessment, which must be updated at least biannually.
- Hire an executive director of overdose response, who reports to the mayor and coordinates with city agencies to lead the city's response to the crisis.
- Hire an opioid restitution program manager, who reports to the executive director, manages projects and serves as a liaison to the Mayor's Office of Recovery Programs.
- Establish an opioid restitution advisory board, which guides the city's use of settlement funds.
- Have the Mayor's Office of Recovery Programs coordinate and publish notices of funding opportunities. The office will also publish annual financial reports.
As the city looks to take full advantage of the windfall of funds to combat the overdose crisis, recent data shows the number of fatal overdoses has risen in Baltimore despite a nationwide decline.
The state saw 2,513 deaths in 2023, a 2.5% decrease from the year prior, but Baltimore had 1,045 deaths, an increase of 5.7%, according to the Maryland Department of Health.
The most recent data shows that Baltimore had a death rate of 146.1 deaths per 100,000 people in the 12-month period ending in July, more than quadrupling the statewide average and dwarfing the death rates of other counties.
That same data, though, may also show some hope as the city tries to keep drug users alive.
The 12-month total of 856 deaths, for example, is a significant decrease from previous periods, when the numbers often exceeded 1,000.
In addition, with 434 overdose deaths so far this year in Baltimore, the city is on track to have fewer than 900 deaths by the end of 2024 — a number that would mark a notable drop but would require the death rate to remain steady, despite an expected increase in fatalities during the winter months.
Baltimore has settled with pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson over its role in the opioid epidemic ahead of a trial scheduled to begin on Monday.
City officials and a company representative confirmed on Monday morning a deal had been reached but, unlike previous settlements, the parties declined to provide additional details. Still, the undisclosed amount of money will come on top of the $402.5 million the city is already slated to receive from previous settlements this year.
"I can confirm the City settled with Johnson & Johnson," city spokesman Bryan Doherty said in a statement. "The City cannot at this time discuss any of the specific terms of the settlement."
Johnson & Johnson initially was part of a larger lawsuit against opioid distributors and manufacturers going to trial on Monday.
With the company settling beforehand, the city has reached deals with five entities heading into the trial with remaining defendants McKesson and Cencora, formerly called AmerisourceBergen.
Last week, the city announced it had reached settlements totaling $160 million with Walgreens and Teva Pharmaceuticals, which also were originally defendants in the upcoming trial.
Baltimore has accused the companies of recklessly pedaling opioids in the city, creating an epidemic that has left Baltimore with the highest fatal overdose rate in the nation.
So far, the city has earmarked $72 million from settlements to fund local harm reduction initiatives and related programs. Anything not stipulated by the agreements will be disbursed through a new governance structure that Scott unveiled earlier this month.
The executive order creating the structure laid out the governance structure in seven phases:
As the city looks to take full advantage of the windfall of funds to combat the overdose crisis, recent data shows the number of fatal overdoses has risen in Baltimore despite a nationwide decline.
The state saw 2,513 deaths in 2023, a 2.5% decrease from the year prior, but Baltimore had 1,045 deaths, an increase of 5.7%, according to the Maryland Department of Health.
The most recent data shows that Baltimore had a death rate of 146.1 deaths per 100,000 people in the 12-month period ending in July, more than quadrupling the statewide average and dwarfing the death rates of other counties.
That same data, though, may also show some hope as the city tries to keep drug users alive.
The 12-month total of 856 deaths, for example, is a significant decrease from previous periods, when the numbers often exceeded 1,000.
In addition, with 434 overdose deaths so far this year in Baltimore, the city is on track to have fewer than 900 deaths by the end of 2024 — a number that would mark a notable drop but would require the death rate to remain steady, despite an expected increase in fatalities during the winter months.
Read Next
Nationwide bus tour visits Baltimore to promote hope, recovery as city combats OD crisis
Amid Baltimore's OD crisis, officials' silence will likely continue through Election Day
Baltimore announces terms of $80 mil opioid settlement with Walgreens
Mobtown Mag wants to hear your stories about drugs