Foundation set to distribute opioid lawsuit settlement money

Mar. 23—A bill to create a foundation to manage about $1 billion in opioid lawsuit settlement money coming to West Virginia has been signed by Gov. Jim Justice.

Senate Bill 674 officially recognizes the West Virginia First Foundation and authorizes Justice to make appointments to its board of directors with the advice and consent of the Senate.

The private, nonstock, nonprofit foundation will distribute any settlement or judgment funds awarded to the state from litigation.

"I applaud Gov. Justice, the state Senate and the House of Delegates for the immediate attention given to this very important bill," Attorney General Patrick Morrisey said in a statement Wednesday. "We will now have the groundwork desperately needed to facilitate the management of the state's and political subdivisions' nearly $1 billion in opioid settlements. These settlements will not bring back the lives lost from the opioid epidemic, but our hope is that the money would provide significant help to those affected the most."

All counties and most municipalities will receive funding from the foundation.

Families who have lost loved ones to fentanyl attended the bill signing Wednesday along with state lawmakers, area mayors and other local dignitaries.

"This is the time to begin the healing from all the carnage caused by the opioid epidemic," Morrisey said. "We must prevent another generation from falling prey to senseless death."

Morrisey and his office started working on the process on how to handle the money as successful opioid lawsuits resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars coming to the state from pharmaceutical companies and drug stores.

A memorandum of understanding (MOU) with municipalities was also needed to distribute money properly.

Morrisey said all 55 counties and 221 of 229 cities and towns have signed on to the MOU.

As the central organization dedicated to addressing the opioid crisis throughout the state, the foundation will receive 72.5 percent of each settlement or judgment, 24.5 percent of settlement and judgment dollars will be allocated to local governments and 3 percent will be held in escrow by the state.

Morrisey said this allocation maximizes the amount of money that will be available for an opioid abatement fund and will distribute money throughout the state. This distribution will allow the money to help people and fund projects most in need.

The foundation will be managed by a board of 11 members, five of whom will be appointed by the governor, subject to confirmation by the Senate. To represent the interests of local governments, the MOU establishes six regions, and one member will be chosen from each of those regions.

An executive director will run the day-to-day operations of the foundation.

"So many lives have been lost and shattered by the opioid epidemic," Morrisey said. "With this new law, West Virginia has dramatically improved its ability to take actions, including abatement, education and treatment to help our state recover from this epidemic."

"We will continue to fight for those families and we will serve as the voices of the sons and daughters they have lost," he added. "The severity of this problem and the harm done to West Virginians cannot be ignored."

Morrisey recently estimated that after the lawsuit with Kroger Pharmacy is settled this summer, the total amount of money coming into the state from all of the opioid lawsuits could surpass $1 billion.

Walmart agreed to a settlement of $65 million and CVS for $82.5 million

— Contact Charles Boothe at cboothe@bdtonline.com

Contact Charles Boothe at cboothe@bdtonline.com