Attorney General Charity Clark has announced a major settlement with pharmaceutical company Mylan Inc., now part of Viatris, addressing its role in the ongoing opioid crisis. This agreement involves multiple states and could result in Mylan paying up to $335 million nationwide over nine years. The funds are aimed at tackling the opioid epidemic, which has seen negative impacts from the company's marketing practices since 2005.
Mylan has manufactured and marketed several opioid products, including generic fentanyl patches, oxycodone, hydrocodone, and buprenorphine. The attorneys general involved in the settlement charge that Mylan falsely promoted these drugs as less prone to abuse than they actually were. In particular, Mylan’s fentanyl patches were more susceptible to abuse, escalating the opioid problem. The company’s strategy involved direct marketing to doctors, resulting in overprescribing and facilitating illegal market diversion.
The settlement was negotiated by the attorneys general of several states, including California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Tennessee, Utah, and Virginia, with additional collaboration from the attorneys general of Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, and Vermont.