Purdue Pharma is accused of triggering the so-called opioid crisis in the United States. The fact that the opioid giant is now filing for bankruptcy is seen as an attempt to avoid the more 2,600 lawsuits at national and state level directed at the company. That's what the New York Times writes.

The bankruptcy application includes proposals for conciliation in most of the cases where lawsuits have been filed against the company. Therefore, the application is expected to be disputed by at least 26 states that previously refused to agree with Purdue Pharma. The intention is to try to reach the Sackler family who owns the company and who is one of the richest in the United States.

Reconstruction and settlement

The bankruptcy application was filed late on Sunday. Purdue Pharma hopes that a complete restructuring of the company will suffice to avoid being brought to trial. The settlement would include, among other things, the Sackler family relinquishing its ownership in the company and that the reconstructed Purdue Pharma's profits would go towards paying the plaintiffs' damages claims.

In addition, the Sackler family would pay $ 3 billion over a seven-year period to those affected by the opioid crisis. They would also sell the British pharmaceutical company Mundipharma. The money from the sale would go to the settlement.

Want to see the settlement

The 24 other states in the US have said that they are prepared to agree to the settlement to get money to the victims as quickly as possible.

Previously, the Johnson & Johnson pharmaceutical company was sentenced to a billion fines for contributing to the US opioid crisis.