The state of Nevada has reached a settlement with CVS Pharmacy worth nearly $152 million over the company’s role in the opioid epidemic, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford announced on May 16.
The settlement will be paid over the next decade and will be split up between the state and the signatories of the One Nevada Agreement between local governments on how to divide opioid settlement money.
“CVS negotiated in good faith,” Ford said at a news conference in Carson City, Nevada. “Their work with the state of Nevada ... will help our state tackle the opioid problem.”
“My office will never stop fighting to hold accountable those companies and organizations that contributed to the crisis of the opioid epidemic,” Ford said. “The resources and funds that come to the state through our settlements will provide substantial help for Nevadans. I will work to do whatever I can to bolster the support we can offer the residents of our great state.”
The settlement is one of the 10 largest between a single state and a single company over opioid claims. It also puts the total money Nevada expects to receive from opioid litigation settlements since 2020 at $606 million, according to Ford’s office. It marks the largest sum the state has brought in opioid-related litigation by itself.
In early 2022, Ford announced Nevada would join a multistate opioid settlement against three of the nation’s largest opioid distributors, under which Nevada will receive $231 million over an 18-year period.
“It is not an exaggeration to say this is the most significant infusion of money into Nevada since the receipt of emergency COVID-19 funding,” Ford said in a statement at the time. “This money will go directly toward remediating the harms done to Nevada by the ongoing opioid epidemic and will give our state, our counties, and our litigating cities access to the funding and tools they need to help the members of our Nevada family impacted by the horrors of addiction.”
Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo addressed the issue during his State of the State address earlier this year.
“Fentanyl possession in any amount should be a category B felony. Addressing these problem areas will have an immediate effect on reducing crime and helps ensure the effectiveness of our public safety and criminal justice systems,” Lombardo said.
Earlier this year, California received a settlement from CVS for about $470 million over allegations that the pharmacy chain contributed to the opioid crisis.
“Today, we begin the year with another win in our fight to hold corporate giants to account for their role in fueling the opioid crisis,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement at the time. “The funds from this settlement will help bring much-needed relief to our communities and will ensure CVS changes its business practices to keep such a crisis from ever happening again.”
CVS will be required to implement additional employee training and investigate potentially suspicious prescriptions. The company’s pharmacies will be subject to site visits and compliance reviews.
The pharmacy chain has also agreed to develop an oversight program with a list of “red flags” associated with prescriptions, patients, and prescribers to help stop the misuse of opioids.
Kara Page, a CVS spokesperson, said in a statement that the company was pleased with the Nevada agreement and noted that opioid prescriptions are written by doctors, not pharmacists. No details about the oversight program were revealed.
