Judge favors boosting Sackler payment in Purdue Pharma deal
ABC News
A judge has indicated he is moving forward with a plan for the owners of OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma to pump at least another $1.2 billion into a nationwide settlement of lawsuits against over the toll of opioids
A judge said Wednesday that he would approve a plan that locks members of the Sackler family who own OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma into pumping at least another $1.2 billion into a nationwide lawsuit settlement that, if ultimately confirmed, would transform the company into a public trust.
The initial approval from U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Drain set the stage for an emotional virtual hearing Thursday that will allow people recovering from addiction and those who have lost loved ones to the crisis to directly address some of the Sacklers.
Wednesday's hearing with Drain, whose courtroom is in White Plains, New York, was more conventional. But in a topsy-turvy legal saga, even the routine matter had a twist.
States that were among the first to support earlier versions of the Purdue settlement objected to one key provision. Joined by some local governments, unions and individuals, they contended it's unfair that the states that held out and then negotiated a larger payment from the Sacklers will receive an outsize share of the additional money to use to address the epidemic.
