[Watch #OnTheScene] Attorneys General Win Millions for Opioid Victims

 [Stein] went on to explain that the opioid “pill part” of the crisis was worse in the State’s whiter, more rural areas – places he’ll need to win over if he plans to run for Governor in 2024. Conversely, opioids such as heroin and fentanyl have taken a greater toll among North Carolinians in predominately Black and/or urban communities (voters a Democrat can take for granted).

RALEIGH, NC – Consulting giant McKinsey & Company has agreed to a $573 million settlement for its role in the opioid epidemic, announced North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein at a virtual press conference earlier today (Feb. 4).

Attorney General Stein stated that he and his counterparts nationwide are “…holding accountable the corporations that created and profited from the opioid epidemic.”

“North Carolina’s share [of the settlement monies] is nearly 19 million dollars,” said Stein. Attorney General Stein pledged to distribute these monies “equitably” across the state – indeed, the epidemic has hit some counties harder than others. He went on to explain that the “pill part” of the crisis was worse in the State’s whiter, more rural areas – places he’ll need to win over if he plans to run for Governor in 2024. Conversely, opioids such as heroin and fentanyl have taken a greater toll among North Carolinians in predominately Black and/or urban communities (voters a Democrat can take for granted).

During the conference, Attorney General Stein doubled-down on his support for the controversial Heroin and Opioid Prevention and Enforcement (HOPE) Act of 2018 (Session Law 2018-44). The Act, still in effect, grants sweeping powers to law enforcement  – something that may be of concern to advocates for police reform. Stein, a Democrat, has enjoyed the support of various law enforcement groups and individuals in his runs for office. 

Watch #OnTheScene: NC AG Josh Stein, CA AG Hector Becerra 

Analysis

According to figures by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS), more than 14,000 North Carolinians died from unintentional opioid overdoses between the years of 1999 and 2018. Those deaths have only continued in 2021. 

Some activists have seen hypocrisy in officials’ response to the opioid epidemic. Black people suffering during the crack epidemic didn’t get anywhere near this level of sympathy and support – they got persecuted. White victims get “Operation S.O.S.“, whereas Black victims get Operation: Incarceration.

It seems that healthcare providers have been far more likely to prescribe opioids to white patients than to Black patients –  a fact that may have saved thousands of lives. The New York Times called this “a rare case” where racial bias inadvertently helped protect Black people from even greater harm. 

Health officials recently certified the R.J. Blackley Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment Center in Butner as an inpatient opioid treatment program. Here are a few resources for North Carolinians struggling with substance abuse. 

Attorney General Stein helped to lead the McKinsey investigation alongside attorneys general from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, and Vermont. The executive committee is joined by the attorneys general of Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, the District of Columbia, and the territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.