Applications for programs supported by opioid settlement funds are open now. Learn more on the Funding Opportunities page.

In 2022, more than 3,000 Illinoisans died of opioid overdose.

To hold companies responsible for their roles in the opioid crisis, the Illinois Attorney General has engaged in multiple investigations, lawsuits, and settlements with opioid manufacturers, distributors, and chain pharmacies. The funds from the settlements will support recovery in communities hardest hit by the opioid crisis and throughout the state.¹

Settlements Overview

The Illinois Attorney General, along with attorneys general for numerous other states, filed lawsuits against prescription opioid distributors, manufacturers, and dispensers to seek recovery for their unfair and deceptive practices in the marketing, sale, and distribution of these drugs. These lawsuits led to numerous national multistate settlement agreements with various participants in the prescription opioid market. As a result of these efforts, Illinois expects to receive more than $1.3 billion in settlement monies by 2038, to be used in all parts of the state to abate the opioid crisis.

Updated information on the status of national opioid settlements can be found at:
National Opioids Settlement (nationalopioidsettlement.com)

Settlements Payments

The first settlement monies were distributed to Illinois in October 2022, with payments to continue for several years, the longest term of which is currently through 2038. To ensure that settlement monies coming to Illinois under any current and future national multistate opioid settlements are allocated equitably, the Illinois Attorney General’s office negotiated the Illinois Opioid Allocation Agreement (Allocation Agreement). The Allocation Agreement provides that a majority of Illinois’ money will go to the Illinois Remediation Fund to be used for abatement programs throughout the state and for an Advisory Board to be appointed to make recommendations on the uses of the monies. The Advisory Board is tasked with seeking to ensure an equitable allocation of the resources to all parts of the state, considering factors including population, rates of opioid use disorder, overdose deaths, and the amount of opioids shipped into a region. The Allocation Agreement also provides for a portion of the settlement monies to be distributed directly to Illinois counties and eligible municipalities to support remediation programs in their communities as determined by the counties and municipalities. The Allocation Agreement sets forth the list of approved abatement uses for the settlement monies.

End of Year 2023

As of the end of 2023, national opioid settlements have been finalized with:

AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health, and McKesson (Distributors)
Johnson & Johnson
Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals
Allergan
Teva Pharmaceuticals
CVS
Walgreens
Walmart
Meijer*

Payments have been distributed from AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health, and McKesson, Johnson & Johnson, Mallinckrodt, and Meijer.

*The Meijer settlement was entered into by certain Illinois counties only, with the monies being distributed in accordance with the Illinois Opioid Allocation Agreement.

“*Information current as of December 31, 2023

Office of Opioid Settlements Administration Update

February 2024

The Office of Opioid Settlements Administration (OOSA) reports total payments of $109.8 million to the Remediation Fund as of January 31, 2024.

At its January 18, 2024 meeting, the Illinois Opioid Remediation Advisory Board recommended two opioid abatement strategies for consideration by the Governor’s Opioid Prevention and Recovery Steering, which approved the two recommendations at its February 7, 2024 meeting. These two recommendations total $24 million for specific abatement strategies over a period of three years.

Harm Reduction

The proposed harm reduction and syringe service strategy is a state-wide plan that prioritizes geographic and racial equity while scaling up effective statewide coverage with a specific focus on marginalized populations in active drug use. Opioid settlement funds shall be dedicated to low-barrier syringe service programs, harm reduction, and peer support services. The approved recommendation is 15 million over 3 years ($5 million per year).

Training and Technical Assistance

To meet the needs identified in recommendations submitted that have training and technical assistance included and the needs of people who have an opioid use disorder (OUD) that are being served by a variety of programs, it is recommended that opioid settlement funds be used to create an Opioid Training and Technical Assistance Center (OTTAC).

The center will support statewide web-based and interpersonal infrastructure, toolkits, subject matter experts, and innovative approaches to address training, technical assistance, and collaborative cross-system coordination to prevent opioid misuse, overdoses, and provide evidenced-based services to those with OUD and co-occurring substance use disorder (SUD)/mental health conditions. The approved recommendation is $9 million dollars over 3 years ($3 million per year).

About OOSA

Established by Executive Order 2022-19, the Illinois Office of Opioid Settlement Administration (OOSA) is the entity responsible for planning, administering, and managing 55% of the funds received from opioid settlements. The OOSA is housed within the Illinois Department of Human Services Division of Substance Use Prevention and Recovery.

The OOSA is dedicated to addressing the opioid crisis and employs resources to fund recommended and approved core abatement strategies for opioid settlement funds to combat the overdose epidemic as established in the Illinois Opioid Allocation Agreement (Allocation Agreement). These opioid core abatement strategies align with recommendations in the 2022 State of Illinois Overdose Action Plan (SOAP), a comprehensive, equity-centric outline for combatting the opioid epidemic.

The OOSA is led by the Statewide Opioid Settlement Administrator, who works collaboratively with the Illinois Opioid Remediation Advisory Board (IORAB) to develop non-binding funding recommendations to present to the Illinois Opioid Prevention and Recovery Steering Committee. The recommendations help ensure the state’s settlement portion in the trust (55%) is used for approved abatement strategies and equitably distributed across the state, taking into account the areas most impacted by the opioid epidemic. IORAB recommendations that are approved by the Steering Committee must be certified by the Attorney General’s office and processed in accordance with state requirements for funding opportunities.

For information on the IORAB, visit its webpage at Illinois Opioid Remediation Advisory Board.

Information for Local Governmental Units

“Local Government Units (LGs)” refers to the more than 200 Illinois counties and municipalities that are eligible to receive a direct distribution of settlement monies under the Allocation Agreement. LGs are required to use their opioid settlement distributions in accordance with the Allocation Agreement, and report their expenditures quarterly.