CHEYENNE — Wyoming Attorney General Keith G. Kautz announced that a $7.4 billion settlement with Purdue Pharma and its owners, the Sackler family, has become legally effective, capping nearly a decade of work by attorneys general across the country to investigate and litigate Purdue’s and the Sacklers’ role in fueling the opioid crisis.
Attorneys general launched the multistate investigation into Purdue in 2016, and Wyoming filed suit in October 2018.
After Purdue filed for bankruptcy in September 2019 amid extensive litigation, attorneys general took a leading role in the bankruptcy proceedings. This included negotiating a new settlement that secured additional funding from the Sacklers after the U.S. Supreme Court, in June 2024, invalidated provisions of a prior settlement. The agreement provides funding to communities nationwide, as well as to individual victims and other claimants in the bankruptcy proceedings.
“This settlement demonstrates our Consumer Protection and Antitrust Unit’s commitment to protecting our citizens and enhancing life across Wyoming,” Kautz said. “The agreement helps support Wyoming communities in providing education, treatment, and prevention related to opioid abuse.”
Fifty-five attorneys general, representing all eligible U.S. states and territories, signed on to the settlement. It resolves litigation against Purdue and the Sacklers for producing and aggressively marketing opioids in the United States, contributing to the nation’s opioid crisis.
The settlement permanently bars the Sacklers from selling opioids in the United States and directs funds to communities across the country for addiction treatment, prevention, and recovery over the next 15 years. Wyoming is expected to receive $9,318,427.65.
Most settlement funds will be distributed in the first three years. The Sacklers are paying more than $1.5 billion immediately, followed by approximately $500 million in May 2027, $500 million in May 2028, and $400 million in May 2029. Purdue is also paying approximately $900 million immediately.
The settlement transfers Purdue’s manufacturing operations to Knoa Pharma LLC, which will be overseen by a board of directors with no prior ties to Purdue. It prohibits Knoa from marketing opioids and establishes an independent monitor to ensure these medicines are provided in a manner that limits the risk of diversion.
The agreement also requires Purdue and the Sacklers to make public more than 30 million documents related to their opioid business.
