National Opioid Settlement Fund

Adams County Community Information

From 1999 to 2020, prescription opioids were involved in more than 263,000 overdose deaths in the U.S.  Prescription opioids were involved in more overdose deaths than any other substances during this period, including cocaine, heroin and psychostimulants, such as methamphetamine. Though not the only cause of the opioid epidemic, prescription opioids played a unique role in the onset of the epidemic due to years of false marketing and commercial distribution as non-habit forming medicines.  Between 2014 and 2021, over 3,000 state, county and municipal governments filed lawsuits against companies in the pharmaceutical industry for the societal and economic costs associated with their products.  

In 2021, to resolve lawsuits brought against them, opioid manufacturer Johnson & Johnson and three major pharmaceutical distributors (McKesson, Amerisource Bergen and Cardinal Health) offered a settlement of up to $26 billion (“the master settlement”). To unlock the full offer, ninety percent of cities and counties in each of the 46 participating states needed to surrender their individual lawsuits and join their state agreements. Negotiated by a coalition of state attorneys general, an agreement was reached in early 2022 for $26 billion – the maximum amount offered – to be distributed in annual payments over 18 years.  Since the master settlement, six other companies have settled lawsuits with a national scope (Purdue, Walmart, Walgreens, CVS, Teva and Allergan). As of July 2023, the total amount of opioid settlement funds obligated to states, counties and cities is over $50 billion.  The settlement is managed at the national level by a Plaintiffs’ Executive Committee and information is consolidated on the National Opioid Settlement website. 

The master settlement agreement requires participating state and local governments to spend the majority (eight-five percent) of settlement funds on strategies that will mitigate the effects of the opioid epidemic.  This requirement is codified in an extensive – though not exhaustive – list of eligible expenditures. In addition to paying $26 billion, the master settlement agreement requires the defendants to impose significant changes in their operations to improve safety and oversight over the distribution of their products.  

Adams County, Illinois has created a committee of content experts and governmental representatives to administer opioid settlement funds distributed to the County.  This committee is tasked with the evaluation of needs related to substance use disorders, the creation of a community wide application for funding to support high-impact projects, recommending valuable applications to support approved mitigations to the Adams County Board, and tracking project expenditures and accomplishments to assure projects and funding make meaningful impact on substance use disorders in Adams County, Illinois.

Information provided on this website includes lists of resources and eligible mitigations as outlined in the master settlement, fund tracking, project application and budget processes, and project results.  Information will be updated as it becomes available, typically on a quarterly basis.  Applicants and community members are encouraged to review information on this website to stay informed on efforts occurring in Adams County as funded by the settlement.