Officials: Sackler opioid lawsuit decision won't affect Burke's payout

The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision earlier this summer to reject a $6 billion opioid settlement by Purdue Pharma will not affect the money Burke County is receiving from drug companies, officials say.

The court rejected the Purdue bankruptcy agreement on the grounds it unfairly shielded the Sackler family – who essentially engineered an opioid epidemic that resulted in the deaths of more than half a million Americans from 1999-2021 – from future civil liability.   

Burke is set to receive more than $24 million between 2022 and 2038 from separate settlements, according to the state’s opioid settlement dashboard, and that money is still guaranteed, according to N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein.

Stein’s office confirmed this week “the Supreme Court’s decision in the Purdue case does not affect the $1.4 billion in opioid settlement funds already flowing to North Carolina from the other settlements that Attorney General Stein helped negotiate.”

Burke County Commissioner Johnnie Carswell, a longtime proponent of expanded opioid treatment resources, agreed. 

“It will not impact the money we are receiving at all,” Carswell said. “The case just keeps the Sackler family from filing bankruptcy to keep from paying what I think they should pay.”

North Carolina’s share of the national opioid settlements that have already been decided amounts to $1.4 billion, and those funds are safe.

“The settlement reached by the Attorney General is permanent, and this would not impact North Carolina,” said Burke County Manager Brian Epley.

In late June, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to reject the settlement, sending the Sacklers and their creditors back to the drawing board. 

Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch, who wrote the opinion for the majority, said the court that granted the bankruptcy deal didn’t have the authority to grant immunity to the family in future cases. 

Stein, who is running for Governor, said he intends to hold the Sacklers’ feet to the fire until a new settlement can be brokered. 

“Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family helped create and fuel an opioid crisis that is still killing North Carolinians – 12 people overdose every day on average,” Stein said. “The Court’s ruling means we now have to go back to the negotiating table. Purdue and the Sacklers must pay so we can save lives and help people live free of addiction. If they won’t pay up, I’ll see them in court.”

Burke County has been active in its efforts to put the money to use. Dr. Katie Varnadoe, Director of Health, is leading efforts to establish a long-term strategic plan on how to best utilize the funds.

Varnadoe said Burke is working with the nationally known Fletcher Group to establish a western N.C. cohort that will help identify needs. In addition, Burke has developed an Overdose Fatality Review (OFR) team, which is studying overdose deaths and devising ways to reduce them. 

Burke is also distributing naloxone, a drug that counteracts the effects of opioid overdoses, employing peer support counselors, and has established the HARBOUR Program — Helping Achieve Recovery in Burke through Opioid Use Reduction – to develop further strategies.