Baltimore releases details of $45 million opioid litigation settlement with Walgreens

Baltimore Mayor Brandon M. Scott unveiled the terms of the settlement reached last month with Walgreens to resolve the city’s claims against the company for its role in fueling Baltimore’s opioid epidemic.

The city also said it has reached an agreement with manufacturer Johnson & Johnson, with terms to be announced at a later date.

Walgreens will pay $45 million by the end of this calendar year and the rest by Dec. 31, 2025. The city said it will use the entire agreement for opioid remediation, with $2 million to the Maryland Peer Advisory Council, $1 million dollars for us. Ours, $1 million for On Your Own Maryland, $1 million for the Maryland Family Coalition, $15 million for the city to establish comprehensive 24/7 outreach services, $5 million for education and 988 outreach and $10 million for the Baltimore Comprehensive Overdose Response to End the Epidemic (BCORE). The remainder of the money received by the City will be managed in accordance with Mayor Scott’s August 2024 executive order.

The city’s settlement with Walgreens is one of six it has obtained as a result of its ongoing lawsuit against opioid distributors and manufacturers. It followed settlements with Allergan and CVS for $45 million each, Teva for $80 million and Cardinal Health for $152.5 million, bringing total announced recoveries from opioid defendants to $402.5 million.

The lawsuit against the other defendants — distributors McKesson and AmerisourceBergen — began last month and is ongoing in Circuit Court in Baltimore City.

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