Episode 40: Christine Minhee on the Promises and Perils of Opioid Litigation

Drugs and Stuff: A Podcast from the Drug Policy Alliance

Today, news broke that the Department of Justice has reached an $8 billion-plus settlement with Purdue Pharma for its role in the opioid crisis. This money should be used to combat the public health emergency of overdose deaths, but another public health emergency -- the COVID-19 pandemic -- has taken hold of media coverage and government spending. As overdose deaths continue to increase, where will this money actually go? We sat down with Christine Minhee, an expert on opioid litigation and creator of the opioid settlement tracker: a project that asks, "Will opioid settlements actually be spent in ways that bolster the public health response to drug addiction?" She spoke with Mary Sylla, a senior staff attorney with DPA, about what opioid litigation is, why it’s so complex, how it ties into our current moment, and what her pie in the sky dream for a settlement would look like.

To see more of Christine’s work, visit opioidsettlementtracker.com. For more information on DPA’s work to prevent fatal overdose, visit drugpolicy.org/overdose.