BALTIMORE, MD—The city of Baltimore on Friday announced a $152.5 million settlement with Cardinal Health, one of the three largest opioid distributors in Baltimore, as part of its ongoing litigation against the companies fueled the worst opioid epidemic in the nation.

The city said it reached a deal with Cardinal Health, the settlement amount which is deliverable within just four months, as part of its third settlement with opioid companies, following a $45 million settlement with Allergan earlier this summer and a $45 million settlement with CVS just last week. The city has now received a total of $242.5 million in settlements, and its case proceeds to trial on September 16 against the five remaining defendant groups, providing an opportunity for further recoveries.

“We have said from the beginning that we are committed to do the right thing, not the popular thing or the easy thing – and these settlements are proof that our decision to reject the global settlements and carry on this fight was the right one,” said Mayor Brandon M. Scott. “The City and our extraordinary outside counsel built an overwhelming case against the opioid companies, and we have recovered vastly more resources than we would have under the global settlements. As our City and partners continue our daily work combatting the impacts of Baltimore’s opioid epidemic that these manufacturers and distributors caused, the resources delivered by these settlements will have a transformative impact on our work.”

The city said the funds will be used solely for opioid remediation and will provide recovery funds to various substance use treatment centers and community organizations throughout Baltimore.

This article was written with the assistance of AI and reviewed by a human editor.

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