West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey briefs the press about a $10 million settlement with opioid marketing consultant McKinsey and Company. (Photo by Steven Allen Adams)

CHARLESTON — The West Virginia Attorney General’s Office announced Thursday an agreement with a consultant accused of helping pharmaceutical companies with marketing of addictive painkillers, fueling the state’s opioid crisis.

Attorney General Patrick Morrisey said his office reached a settlement agreement for $10 million with McKinsey and Company Inc. Morrisey’s deal is separate from the $573 million settlement agreement between McKinsey and 47 states and the District of Columbia.

“McKinsey’s improper efforts helped to increase the sale and use of opioids in West Virginia,” Morrisey said during a press conference Thursday morning at the State Capitol Building in Charleston.

According to the Attorney General’s Office, McKinsey helped advise opioid manufacturers on marketing painkillers to doctors and pharmacists to boost sales. According to the Wall Street Journal, McKinsey stopped all work related to opioids in 2019, but Morrisey said McKinsey had a 15-year relationship with Perdue Pharma, the makers of OxyContin.

“McKinsey provided consulting services to members of the opioid supply channel to help boost the sale of opioids,” Morrisey said. “In providing those consulting and marketing services, it instituted programs for some of the country’s largest manufacturers.”

The conditions of the settlement, filed in Greenbrier County Circuit Court along with the lawsuit Thursday, require McKinsey to pay $10 million to West Virginia, prohibits the company from doing any further business related to opioids, and requires McKinsey to create a records retention system to preserve key documents related to its work on opioids. The settlement also leaves open the possibility of other suits by local governments against McKinsey.

The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that McKinsey was set to announce a separate $573 million settlement with 47 states and D.C. Morrisey said he chose to file his own lawsuit against McKinsey to ensure that any settlement would not be divided between the state by population, as West Virginia has been one of the hardest hit states during the opioid crisis.

“I think it’s good for West Virginia, because once again it reflects the unique needs that we have,” Morrisey said. “I think it’s a great settlement for West Virginia and I’m very pleased with it.”

The legal work for the settlement was handled by the Attorney General’s Office without the need of outside legal counsel, ensuring that the entire $10 million goes to the state. Morrisey said the settlement award would be used directly on combating the state’s drug epidemic, such as recovery and treatment. Morrisey said his office would be in contact with the West Virginia Legislature and Gov. Jim Justice.

“We are at a crossroads in dealing with the opioid epidemic,” Morrisey said. “Over the past year, we’ve all been through COVID-19 and we know that it’s had some really catastrophic effects in other areas in terms of public health, mental health, and in terms of substance abuse. We need to keep our eye on the prize and keep focusing on the epidemic.”

The Attorney General’s Office has pending lawsuits against CVS, Rite-Aid, Walgreens and Walmart for their part in opioid distribution through their pharmacies. Morrisey is also part of the multidistrict litigation on behalf of the state’s counties and municipalities against Perdue Pharma and the Sackler family who own that company.

Another massive lawsuit against drug distributors AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health, and McKesson Corporation is pending. U.S. District Judge David Faber scheduled Monday, May 3, for that trial to start. That suit involves Cabell County and the City of Huntington, which was one of the hardest hit parts of the state at the peak of the opioid crisis.

Morrisey said Thursday’s settlement with McKinsey was a good sign that a larger settlement could come from opioid manufacturers.

“I think we can get it done, and if we work together all West Virginians can benefit from this team approach and we’ll have a much more effective effort,” Morrisey said. “I’m really hopeful that this is a signal for 2021.”

Steven Allen Adams can be reached at sadams@newsandsentinel.com