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LANSING?? The cut-off date for municipalities to complete participation forms to receive funds from the multibillion-dollar Opioid settlement is a week away and Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel is urging eligible municipalities to submit the required forms to be eligible for the more than $446 million that will be allocated to Michigan over the next 13 years.
The participation cutoff date for local governments to receive direct payments is April 18, 2023.
In December 2022, Nessel signed Michigan onto the proposed multibillion-dollar national settlements with Teva Pharmaceuticals, Allergan Pharmaceuticals, CVS Pharmacy, and Walmart Pharmacy. The settlements were the result of efforts to hold those companies responsible for their roles in the opioid epidemic that has so deeply impacted some communities in this state.
?No dollar amount can ease the pain suffered by thousands of families impacted by these drugs,? Nessel said. ?The Opioid epidemic has ravaged many Michigan communities. However, the funds from this settlement will provide critical financial resources for those who need them most. I again encourage every eligible municipality to register so that they and their residents can benefit and start to recover from the devastating effects of this epidemic.?
Based on the settlement terms, there are 278 local units of government in Michigan - called subdivisions in the settlement agreement - eligible to participate. This includes each of the state?s 83 counties. Other municipalities are eligible if:
- the municipality is currently litigating against the defendants; or
- the municipality has a population of 10,000 people or more.
The Department has a?full list of eligible subdivisions on its website.
Eligible subdivisions that have not yet completed participation forms may?email the Department?for additional instructions. However, the deadline to participate and receive direct payments is April 18, 2023.
The more than $446 million that Michigan is eligible to receive over the life of the settlements is dependent, in part, on the participation of local governments. Spending priority would be placed on treatment and prevention.
Since taking office, AG Nessel has prioritized combatting the opioid epidemic. Michigan is actively working with Walgreens on a separate settlement. To date, Nessel has joined the nationwide?Janssen Settlement, the?McKinsey & Co. Settlement, and the?distributor settlement, which includes the nation's three major pharmaceutical distributors - Cardinal, McKesson, and AmerisourceBergen - and Johnson & Johnson. The combined settlements will net over $795 million to Michigan governments for Opioid use disorder treatment and remediation.
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