By joining the state and other counties, cities, townships and villages in a One Ohio memorandum of understanding — and if settlement efforts are successful — Montgomery County could receive $49-50 million to abate addiction, said Montgomery County Administrator Michael Colbert.
RELATED: Deal in the works for Ohio to settle massive opioid lawsuit
“We see this as in the best interest of our county and our community to help bring some resources home,” Colbert said.
In 2018 alone, 3,764 Ohioans died of unintentional drug overdoses, with 3,150 of those involving some type of prescription or illicit opioid. The costly crisis overburdened police, social service agencies, and treatment centers.
The height of Montgomery County’s opioid epidemic came in 2017 when 566 people died of accidental overdose deaths. In May that year — which remains the deadliest month ever — 81 people died. Overdose deaths numbered 289 in 2018 and 290 last year, according to the coroner’s office.
More than 2,600 federal lawsuits from across the country were consolidated before U.S. District Court Judge Dan Polster in Cleveland, but Ohio is the first state to attempt a single settlement negotiation on behalf of all its plaintiffs.
Last month, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost asked local governments with pending opioid litigation to work cooperatively on a settlement agreement — which could total as much as $1 billion — under the One Ohio umbrella. The deadline for local jurisdictions to sign a memorandum of understanding with the state is today.
“We won’t shut the door on communities that need to take formal action after March 6th to join us, but the time to act is now,” Yost said. “Every day that passes is one more day that companies can settle with someone ahead of Ohio.”
MORE: Dayton doctor pleads guilty in federal opioid case
Based on the One Ohio guidelines and a $1 billion settlement, Dayton would receive $12 million and Warren County $9.5 million and Greene County $8.2 million. Clark County would receive $11 million.
But jurisdictions are not guaranteed those amounts, said Ward Barrentine, the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office Civil Division who represents the county.
“This is an ongoing process,” Barrentine said. “These are simply settlement negotiations which this document is a part of. The terms and conditions may change as we make this offer to the various manufacturers and distributors.”
MORE: $260M settlement reached in bellwether Ohio opioid lawsuit
Of any settlement funds under the One Ohio agreement, 11% would be taken off the top for attorney fees and the remaining cash would be divvied up — 30% for local governments, 55% to a new foundation and 15% to the attorney general’s office.
Montgomery County announced in February 2018 that it would sue opioid manufacturers and distributors, similar to the city of Dayton, which initiated legal action in June 2017 against companies that the governments allege bear responsibility for the crisis.
The lawsuits allege the pharmaceutical industry knowingly employed misleading marketing tactics and failed to track suspicious orders, which contributed to the opioid epidemic.
“This public health epidemic has inflicted enormous harm on our community. Too many families have been devastated by the impact of addiction and too many have died,” said Montgomery County Commission President Judy Dodge. “Today we say enough is enough. We’ve taken another step toward righting those wrongs.”
About the Author
