AUSTIN – Attorney General Paxton announced a planned $3.1 billion settlement with Walmart, with more than $168 million designated for Texas, for Walmart’s role in the nationwide opioid epidemic, a press release states.
The agreement will largely track the terms of the Global Prescription Opioid Litigation Settlement Agreement with the opioids distributors that was executed in July 2021.
“The opioid epidemic has had devastating impacts on millions of Americans, and we are hopeful that we will reach a final agreement on all terms to ensure that Walmart is held responsible for their role in it,” said Paxton. “This settlement is yet another example of my office’s commitment to protecting the people of Texas and ensuring that we hold accountable those who have violated the law and worsened the effects of the opioid epidemic.”
This agreement is the latest opioid settlement that Paxton has negotiated for Texas. To date, he has secured approximately $2.4 billion for Texas from the manufacturers, distributors, pharmacies, and others that caused the opioid crisis, including Walmart, Allergan, Mallinckrodt, Teva, Endo, Johnson & Johnson, and McKinsey.
Paxton worked closely on these negotiations with the Attorneys General of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee.