Johnson & Johnson Settles For $230M, Quits Opioid Business

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Johnson & Johnson is going out of the opioid business in the US. 

It's also going to pay the state of New York a $230 million settlement, the New York Times reports. 

The agreement takes them out of a trial of several pharmaceutical makers slated to start next week. 

The funds will be used to fund treatment and prevention programs in New York, state Attorney General Letitia James said. The opioid industry is facing more than 3,000 lawsuits nationwide, per the Times.

Johnson & Johnson's involvement in the trial centered around products made by its subsidiary Janssen—a Fentanyl patch and a painkiller with an anti-crush coating. 

The pharmaceutical giant released a statement asserting that the drugs were less than 1% of the market and that their promotion was "appropriate and responsible," the Washington Post reports. 

The company is still facing lawsuits in other states, NBC News reports. 

QUESTIONS:

1) Briefly discuss the basis of Johnson & Johnson's $230 million settlement in New York City.

2) Explain the company's involvement in the opioid woes. How did the company feel about the drug abuse?

3) What does the New York government plan to do with the compensation?

4) Do you find the pharmaceutical company's decision to just pay up a wise move? What made you say so?

5) How strongly do you feel about the drug-manufacturing makers' responsibility for any potential misuse or abuse?

VOCABULARY:

go out of business - fail and stop doing business permanently​