US judge to approve Purdue Pharma’s opioid bankruptcy settlement

(Reuters) -A federal bankruptcy judge said on Friday he will approve a restructuring plan for drugmaker Purdue Pharma that includes a $7.4 billion settlement resolving claims that it fueled the U.S. opioid epidemic through the sale of addictive pain medications like OxyContin.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean Lane during a hearing in White Plains, New York, indicated he plans to sign off on Purdue’s Chapter 11 plan, capping off a years-long bankruptcy case that began in 2019, the Stamford, Connecticut-based company said.