2023 Opioid Settlements

FAQs

1. How will the new funds from the five new settlements – CVS, Walgreens, Walmart, Teva, and Allergan - be allocated within Maine?

The new funds will be allocated the same as with the existing National Opioid Settlement: 30% would be directly paid to eligible counties, cities, and towns in Maine.  50% would be allocated to the Maine Recovery Fund for statewide distribution, and 20% would be allocated to the Attorney General.  All funds will need to be spent on opioid abatement activities as with the existing National Opioid Settlement, including prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery programs. 

A new draft Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) (PDF) allocating the new opioid settlement funds to subdivisions must be signed by the Attorney General and the litigating counties, cities, and towns (ME Litigation Subdivisions (PDF)).  A separate draft MOU with litigating Maine school districts may be found here (PDF). 

2. How much will my county, city, or town receive under the new settlements?

The settlements require all eligible subdivisions in Maine to participate for Maine to receive the maximum payments.  If this happens, as it did with the existing National Opioid Settlement, Maine could receive nearly $100 million in additional funds over 15 years – of which over $14 million will be paid in 2023.  Estimates of the maximum payments to participating subdivisions under the new MOU may be found here (PDF) and detailed estimates of payments by year and by settlement may be found here (PDF).

3. How will my county/city/town’s attorney fees be paid?

The five new national settlements establish additional funds of over $1.8 billion for attorney fees and costs for attorneys representing municipalities that join the settlements. The settlements require attorneys who recover from those funds to waive enforcement of their contingency fee entitlements (PDF) as to all of their clients and to notify their clients accordingly. 

4. Over what time period will these new settlements be paid?

Together they will pay out over 15 years.  By settlement, they will pay out as follows (assuming maximum participation by Maine’s eligible counties, cities, and towns):

Walmart: 1 year
CVS: 10 years
Walgreens: 15 years
Teva: 13 years
Allergan:7 years

5. How can my county/city/town participate in the settlement?

Each eligible subdivision in Maine will need to sign and return to the settlement administrator a participation form by May 2.  The form is similar to the forms that subdivisions submitted for the National Opioid Settlement.  The settlement administrator has emailed the forms to eligible subdivisions or their counsel, and a sample of the forms may be found here (PDF) .  If a county, city, or town needs their form or information about the sign-on process, its staff may contact the Attorney General’s office at 207-626-8800.

6. Where can counties, cities, and towns find additional guidance about ways to use these funds to address the opioid crisis in Maine? 

The Attorney General’s Office has created a website with resources to help subdivisions learn more about the approved uses of the settlement funds, including public health-based principles, guides, and toolkits.