Companies agree to $8.75 million payment to Oklahoma ahead of opioid trial

Two drug companies agreed late last week to pay Oklahoma $8.75 million to avoid going to court over their alleged role in fueling the state’s opioid crisis. The state had accused the companies of deceptively marketing opioids and understating their risks. As part of Friday’s agreement, the companies — Endo Pharmaceuticals and Par Pharmaceutical, both subsidiaries of Endo International — denied the allegations and didn’t admit to any wrongdoing. Endo International withdrew its opioids Opana and Opana ER from the market in 2016, and suspended any research programs with the drugs. Oklahoma has reached pretrial agreements with other opioid companies, including OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma and Teva Pharmaceuticals. A judge last summer ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay the state $465 million to help address its opioid crisis.