Supreme Court Rejects Settlement Related To Nation’s Opioid Crisis

A bankruptcy judge approved an estimated $10 billion settlement that would have been paid to victims, hospitals, states and others.

The Supreme Court Thursday rejected a mass settlement related to the nation’s opioid crisis.

Purdue Pharma filed for bankruptcy in 2019 while facing thousands of lawsuits alleging its marketing of OxyContin as a non-addictive pain relief pill, triggered an opioid epidemic that led to over half-a-million deaths.

A bankruptcy judge approved an estimated $10 billion settlement that would have been paid to victims, hospitals, states and others. The owners of Purdue Pharma denied any wrongdoing but agreed to contribute $6 billion to the settlement fund if they would be protected from future lawsuits.

By a 5-4 vote, the justices voted that a bankruptcy judge does not have enough power to arrange a mass settlement of thousands of claims that include protections for people who are not bankrupt.