North Chesterfield-based drug manufacturer Indivior reached an $86 million settlement with 16 states for its alleged role in spreading opioid addiction across the country.
Indivior was accused of improperly targeting sales to doctors who run pill mills and who fail to monitor suspicious orders, as reported by Reuters. The company’s buprenorphine-based products include Sublocaden and Suboxone.
According to New York Attorney General Letitia James, the settlement concerned Indivior’s manufacture of buprenorphine-based products used in the treatment of opioid abuse. If misused, the drugs can allegedly lead to further addiction.
“When companies like Indivior exploit those in the thralls of addiction for profit, their behavior must be stopped,” James said in a statement. The $86 million settlement over five years will provide opioid addiction treatment, recovery and prevention in the 16 states awarded.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that more than 800,000 Americans died of opioid overdoses between 1999 and 2023.
“The opioid epidemic has ravaged Virginia families time and time again, with big pharmaceutical companies to blame in many cases. Indivior pushed buprenorphine-based products – which are used to treat opioid use disorder – to continue to line their own pockets. It’s wrong to target those trying to recover, and I’m glad we were able to put a stop to it,” Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares said.
The settlement in principle was negotiated by the attorneys general of New York, Illinois, Tennessee, Utah and Virginia in coordination with an executive committee consisting of the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon and Vermont.
Reuters reported that Indivior is also a defendant in more than 400 civil lawsuits accusing manufacturers, distributors and retailing of ignoring how opioids have been prescribed and used and marketing them improperly for treating chronic pain.
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Rebecca Barnabi
