WASHINGTON, Feb. 14 (Xinhua) -- More than 20 state attorneys general across the United States on Friday signed a letter rejecting an 18 billion-U.S.-dollars settlement offer from three major drug wholesalers, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.
McKesson Corp., AmerisourceBergen Corp. and Cardinal Health Inc. had reportedly been discussing the settlement since October so as to end litigation against their role in the opioid crisis, and had offered to pay 18 billion dollars over 18 years.
The letter includes Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia as well as Ohio, West Virginia and Florida. The states are seeking between 22 billion dollars and 32 billion dollars, said the report.
Nearly every state and more than 2,500 cities, tribes and municipalities have filed suits against opioid manufacturers, distributors and pharmacies for their respective roles in the opioid epidemic, said the report.
