State Could Receive $508M Opioid Settlement

If the proposed settlements are approved, the Murphy Administration will have secured over $1 billion through investigation and litigation for New Jersey and its communities to spend in combatting the opioid epidemic.

problem with the MVC in some way, send an email to my office and we’ll do our best to help you out, whether it’s getting a special appointment or a better answer to a question or concern you have.

But it doesn’t stop with our hard-working friend at the MVC. We may be able to help with other agencies as well. Veterans’ benefits, seniors’ programs, property tax relief programs, and other issues are all among the many things we contact state agencies about on behalf of the people we represent.

When the unemployment insurance system was overwhelmed during the height of the pandemic, new procedures were put in place to allow legislative offices to forward claims to the labor department. Since then, we’ve helped hundreds of people with their claims. We can’t influence decisions made by the department or speed up the department’s response, but it’s another way we can help make things a little easier.

Sometimes we get calls or emails asking for help with legal issues or matters that are before a court. We don’t go there. We can’t give legal advice – you need to call a lawyer for that – and we’re barred by state ethics law from getting involved in court matters.

But other than things like those, we’ll try to help you with state government issues in any way we can. Usually we can resolve problems and get answers. It’s your government, you’re paying for it, and you should get the service you deserve.

Dealing with the bureaucracy can be daunting and unpleasant sometimes. If you’re having a hard time with it, let me know.

It’s part of my job to help.

Alex Sauickie is a life-long Jackson resident who represents his home town and 13 other towns in the State Assembly.

TRENTON – Governor Phil Murphy and Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin announced that all 21 counties and all 241 municipalities in New Jersey eligible for direct distributions have joined the State in signing onto the nationwide settlement agreements with pharmacy chains CVS, Walgreens, and Walmart, and drug makers Teva Pharmaceuticals and Allergan, to resolve claims involving their alleged roles in fomenting the country’s opioid crisis. As a result, New Jersey and its eligible counties and municipalities are on track to receive the maximum amount available to the State under the settlements: approximately $508.1 million. Under the settlements, the amount that each state will receive depends on the level of participation among its eligible county and municipal governments. New Jersey has now achieved 100 percent participation among those counties and municipalities.

The settlements with CVS, Walgreens, and Walmart resolve allegations that the pharmacy chains helped fuel the opioid epidemic by ignoring red flags that prescriptions were being diverted into illegal trafficking. In addition to the financial settlements, the pharmacies have agreed to court-ordered injunctive relief that requires the pharmacies to monitor, report, and share data about suspicious activity related to opioid prescriptions.

The settlements reached with Allergan and Teva resolve allegations that the drug makers helped fuel the U.S. opioid epidemic by overstating the painkillers’ benefits, downplaying the risk of addiction, and failing to maintain controls to prevent opioid misuse. Teva, an Israeli-based drug manufacturer, makes Actiq and Fentora, which are branded fentanyl products for cancer pain, as well as a number of generic opioids, including

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