Supreme Court rejects US opioid settlement with Purdue Pharma

FILE - Fake pill bottles with messages about Purdue Pharma are displayed during a protest outside the courthouse where the company's bankruptcy proceedings were taking place, in White Plains, New York, Aug. 9, 2021.

The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a nationwide settlement with OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma that would have shielded members of the Sackler family who own the company from civil lawsuits over the toll of opioids but also would have provided billions of dollars to combat the opioid epidemic.