Bexar County will get more than $12 million under Johnson & Johnson opioid settlements

Bexar County agreed to accept more than $12 million in payments from Johnson & Johnson as part of the drugmaker's settlement for its alleged role in the national opioid epidemic, the Express-News reports.

Under the agreement, J&J will pay $4.1 million to Bexar to settle the county's lawsuit against the company, according to the daily. Another $8.5 million is expected to flow to the county as part of a settlement announced Tuesday between the drugmaker and the State of Texas.

Bexar County filed suit in 2018 against dozens of drug manufacturers, promoters and distributors as the nationwide addiction crisis spiraled out of control. The county's fees and legal expenses in the case are capped at 12.3%, the Express-News reports.

Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff said officials still must decide how to allocate the windfall. In 2018, the county pledged to use settlement money from its lawsuits to fund addiction treatment.

“Finally, after three years, we see some real things happen here and some money coming our way to help,” the Express-News quotes Wolff as saying. “We need to follow through on that pledge.”

While settlements are sometimes paid out over a period of months or years, the county is set receive the entirety of the J&J settlement by Dec. 31, the daily reports.

Texas still expects to receive up to $1.2 billion as part of a massive national settlement it joined earlier this year against J&J and three of the biggest U.S. pharmaceutical distributors, according to news reports. So far, only J&J has finalized agreements with the county and state.

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