Johnson & Johnson ordered to pay Oklahoma $572M in landmark opioid case

Johnson & Johnson will have to pay the state of Oklahoma for its role in the opioid epidemic, a judge ruled in the country’s first civil case seeking to hold the pharmaceutical industry accountable for the crisis.

Cleveland County District Judge Thad Balkman announced Monday that Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiary, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, must pay the state $572,102,028 for worsening the opioid crisis in Oklahoma. The state originally asked for more than $17 billion over 30 years to help prevent and treat addiction and to help those whose lives were upended due to drug use.