Pennsylvania to Receive More Than $205 Million, Beginning in Late 2026
HARRISBURG — Attorney General Dave Sunday announced that a $7.4 billion national settlement reached with Purdue Pharma and its owners, the Sackler family, has become legally effective, capping nearly a decade of work in pursuing investigations and litigation over Purdue’s and the Sacklers’ role in fueling the opioid crisis.
A coalition of attorneys general launched a multistate investigation of Purdue in 2016, and Pennsylvania sued Purdue in 2019.
Pennsylvania is expected to receive more than $200 million from the settlement, over the next 15 years.
After Purdue filed bankruptcy in September 2019 in light of massive litigation against it, the attorneys general took a lead role in the bankruptcy proceedings, including negotiating a new settlement that obtained more money from the Sacklers after the Supreme Court in June 2024 invalidated provisions in a prior settlement.
The settlement will provide funding for communities across Pennsylvania and nationwide, as well as to individual victims and other groups who filed claims in the bankruptcy proceedings.
“This $7.4 billion settlement is a major step in holding Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family accountable for fueling the opioid crisis,” Attorney General Sunday said. “It delivers critical resources to communities and victims across Pennsylvania and the nation. While it cannot undo the harm caused by those responsible, it does hold them accountable and provide support for those impacted.”
Fifty-five attorneys general representing all eligible U.S. states and territories previously signed onto the settlement. It resolves litigation against Purdue and the Sacklers for producing and aggressively marketing opioids in the United States, fueling the largest drug crisis in the country’s history.
The settlement permanently bars the Sacklers from selling opioids in the U.S. and delivers funds for addiction treatment, prevention, and recovery to communities across the country over the next 15 years.
Most settlement funds will be distributed in the first three years. The Sacklers are paying more than $1.5 billion today, followed by approximately an additional $500 million in May 2027, $500 million in May 2028, and $400 million in May 2029. Additionally, Purdue is paying approximately $900 million today. Funds could be distributed to the Commonwealth and its subdivisions as early as late 2026.
With this settlement, Pennsylvania has now secured over $2 billion in opioid settlement funds.
The settlement also means that Purdue’s manufacturing operations transfer effective today to Knoa Pharma LLC, which will be overseen by a board of directors who had no connection to Purdue. The settlement prevents Knoa from marketing opioids and provides for an independent monitor to ensure it provides these medicines in the safest possible manner that limits the risk of diversion.
The settlement also provides Purdue and the Sacklers will make public more than 30 million documents related to their opioid business.
Attorney General Sunday was joined in reaching the settlement by Attorneys General of Alabama, Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Northern Mariana Islands, Ohio, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, U.S. Virgin Islands, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
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