Members of the Shawano County Executive Committee agreed June 19 to participate in an opioid lawsuit settlement with the Kroger Co., which operates Pick ’n Save stores among others.
The full Shawano County Board of Supervisors then adopted a resolution to the same at its June 26 meeting.
County Board Chairman Tom Kautza said the funds the county gets from the settlement will be used for counseling and anti-drug programs sponsored by the Department of Human Services.
Carrie Buntjer, finance director, said the funds will be added to those secured from previous settlements at the same percentage.
The agreement was reported in the fall of 2023.
The Kroger Co. agreed to pay up to $1.4 billion over 11 years. This includes up to $1.2 billion for state and local governments and nearly $173 million to cover lawyers’ fees and costs.
Thirty-three states would be eligible for money in the deal.
Shawano joined 66 other Wisconsin counties (including Menominee and Oconto counties) in the lawsuit, with Milwaukee, Dane, Waukesha and Walworth counties hiring separate counsel and then joining the litigation.
According to the Associated Press, over the past eight years, prescription drug manufacturers, wholesalers, consultants and pharmacies have proposed or finalized opioid settlements totaling more than $50 billion, including at least 12 others worth more than $1 billion.
Most of the settlement money is to be used to address an overdose epidemic linked to more than 80,000 deaths a year in the U.S. in recent years, with most of the latest deaths connected to illicit synthetic drugs such as fentanyl rather than prescription painkillers.
kpasson@newmedia-wi.com
