By Taylor Wooten for the Daily Journal
Both Franklin and Greenwood have opted out of a statewide opioids settlement, at least for now.
The Greenwood Board of Public Works and Safety voted unanimously to opt out of the statewide lawsuit against opioid makers and distributors at a special meeting in June, just days prior to the June 30 deadline set by Gov. Eric Holcomb.
Local governments wishing to pursue their own settlements needed to opt out of the state settlement taking on Purdue Pharma, maker of OxyContin, and the Sackler family, the company’s owners; Cardinal Health; McKesson; AmerisourceBergen; and Janssen, a subsidiary of Johnson and Johnson.
Because Greenwood may get a better settlement on its own, city attorney Shawna Koons-Davis advised the board to opt out of the settlement. The city’s ongoing settlements should receive more payment from a larger number of suppliers, she said.
In the state’s plan, localities will split a 15% cut of the settlement. The state will receive 15%, with the remaining 70% going toward statewide treatment, education and prevention programs for opioid addiction. The money will flow through the Family and Social Services Administration, and local governments will decide how to use about half of it.
Greenwood is one of many Indiana cities opting out of the state lawsuit. By doing so, the city can continue to pursue its own lawsuit against drug distributors and manufacturers, and will forgo any payment from the state settlement.
The Franklin Board of Public Works and Safety also voted to opt out of the settlement at its June meeting. The board also voted unanimously under the advisement of city attorney Lynn Gray.
As of June 29, there were 38 cities or counties that had opted out. The Indiana Attorney General’s Office encouraged cities and towns to be part of the lawsuit in a statement.
“Our goal from the beginning has been to partner with cities, towns and counties by splitting the settlement proceeds evenly between the state and local communities,” the statement said.
Indiana cities opting out of the state lawsuit may cause a decrease in how much money the state receives. This could cause a lack of state support for local communities facing the opioids crisis.
“As communities opt out of the settlement, the risk that Indiana citizens won’t receive the maximum amount of funds to combat the effects of opioid abuse increases and could cut the overall proceeds by half or more,” the statement said.
Cities have the opportunity to opt back into the state’s litigation after 60 days or before Sept. 30, whichever comes first.
