New Jersey drug company to provide cash, naloxone to Delaware in latest opioid settlement

New Jersey-based drug manufacturer Amneal Pharmaceuticals has become the latest company to reach a settlement agreement with Delaware and other states for its role in fueling the opioid crisis, the Delaware Department of Justice announced Monday.

The settlement, worth over $270 million, follows claims that Amneal — which manufactured nearly 9 billion generic opioid pills from 2006 to 2019 — "knowingly failed to monitor and report suspicious orders placed by its customers," thereby allowing the overprescription of opioids, according to the Delaware Department of Justice.

It comes amid a surge in overdoses in Kent and Sussex counties, with state police issuing multiple safety advisories after 125 suspected overdoses were reported downstate within a single week. Analysis by the Delaware National Guard found many of the drugs involved in the overdoses contained both xylazine, the veterinary sedative also known as "tranq," and the synthetic opioid fentanyl.

Amneal has agreed to provide $92.5 million in cash over the next decade to the states involved in the settlement, according to the Delaware Department of Justice. Like past settlements, Delaware's payout will go to the state’s Prescription Opioid Settlement Distribution Fund, which will then disperse the money to organizations dedicated to addressing addiction.

The rest of the settlement funds will be provided to states in the form of naloxone nasal spray, the opioid overdose-reversing drug more commonly known as Narcan.

Amneal's generic version of naloxone was approved for over-the-counter sales by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on April 24, according to the company. And while Amneal did not issue a statement following the settlement, the company's co-chief executive officers said they were "proud to help address this public health emergency" in a press release regarding the launch of their generic Narcan.

“While no amount of money can undo the harm that has been done, we will continue to hold pharmaceutical companies accountable for their role in the opioid crisis, both nationally and here in Delaware," said Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings. "We have lost too many to this deadly epidemic, and we will stand for it no more.” 

MORE:From patent to Percocet: How this powerful opioid got its start in Delaware

Send story tips or ideas to Hannah Edelman at hedelman@delawareonline.com. For more reporting, follow them on Twitter at @h_edelman.