Opioid funds a sad coda

A plan approved by New York’s 2nd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Tuesday likely paves the way for billions of dollars to fight the horrific opioid epidemic. The money will come from Purdue Pharma, the drug manufacturer responsible for aggressively and carelessly making and marketing the top-selling opioid painkiller OxyContin, and from the company’s previous owner, the Sackler family.

Troublingly, the bankruptcy arrangement the court approved shields the Sacklers from current and future civil liability — even though only the company, not its owners, declared bankruptcy. While there is a chance of an appeal to the Supreme Court, ultimately the Sacklers will still have to pay — about $6 billion for victims and their survivors, and for addressing the ongoing opioid crisis.

While family members could face criminal charges, their name will forever be marred by their ugly role in the nation’s addiction to opioids and the hundreds of thousands of lives destroyed. Their greed, dishonesty and disregard led to the deaths of more than 100,000 Americans in 2021 alone, including more than 600 Long Islanders. As many as 150 people a day are still dying across the country.

The dangerous and deadly impact of the initial opioid epidemic in which Purdue Pharma played such a significant role ripples through the nation even now. Earlier this year, Nassau County saw a spike in overdoses, apparently spurred by counterfeit prescription pills laced with fentanyl, a synthetic opioid drug that’s 100 times as strong as morphine. And the federal Drug Enforcement Administration has warned about a new mix of fentanyl and the animal sedative xylazine, which is known as “tranq,” that results in an even higher risk of fatal drug poisoning.

Money already secured by New York State in other settlements has been helpful, providing millions of dollars to Long Island for treatment, recovery and prevention. The Purdue settlement will provide even more. State and local officials should ensure those funds are distributed to have the most impact — toward residential and outpatient treatment, programs that assist users on their paths to recovery, and counseling and education so important to preventing opioid addiction from spreading further. Some of those dollars should also help existing organizations boost their efforts further and respond more quickly to an ever-changing and ever-challenging crisis.

While the settlement may not provide the full justice victims and their families sought, the fact that some of the money will be earmarked for them and their survivors sets an important precedent for holding massive and powerful pharmaceutical companies accountable.

As for the Sackler family, even the protection from future lawsuits won’t keep them from being held responsible for one of the most tragic crises of our time. We can only hope that the money they’ll have to pay will help the nation save and protect the many others still at risk.