Cherokee Nation Strikes Opioid Settlement with Distributors

The Cherokee Nation territory in Oklahoma has reached a settlement of $75 million with the three largest drug wholesalers in the U.S. over their alleged role in the opioid epidemic. This is the first settlement with a tribal government in the opioid litigation.

In 2017, the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma became the first tribe to sue pharmacies and distributors for supplying drugs throughout the opioid epidemic, accusing the drug companies of releasing a torrent of prescription painkillers into northeast Oklahoma, resulting in overdose deaths doubling between 2003 and 2014.

Negotiations over settlements with Native American tribes are not covered by the ongoing settlement process involving state and local governmental entities, noted the three drug distributors — Cardinal Health, AmerisourceBergen and McKesson — in a joint statement, who added that they “strongly dispute the allegations against them.”

The state of Oklahoma sued the three distributors in 2000. That case is still pending.