Johnson & Johnson has agreed to pay New York $230 million to settle claims that the pharmaceutical giant helped fuel the opioid crisis.
On Saturday, Attorney General Letitia James said the drugmaker also agreed to permanently end the manufacturing and distribution of opioids across New York and the rest of the nation.
The deal removes Johnson & Johnson from a trial that is slated to begin next week on Long Island. It's part of a slew of litigation over an epidemic linked to nearly 500,000 deaths over the last two decades.
However, Johnson and Johnson says the settlement was "not an admission of liability or wrongdoing by the company." It said the settlement involved two prescription painkillers that are already no longer sold in the U.S.
Additional reporting by The Associated Press.
