Benzinga | Jul 20, 2021 10:47AM EDT

Drug Distributors To Pay Up To $1.1B To Settle New York Opioid Claims

* McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK), Cardinal Health Inc (NYSE:CAH), and AmerisourceBergen Corp (NYSE:ABC) have agreed to pay up to $1.179 billion to settle claims by New York state and two of its biggest counties over their role in the U.S. opioid epidemic.

* The drug distributors settled as state attorneys general prepare to announce a $26 billion deal with the distributors and drugmaker Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), resolving cases as soon as this week.

* The CDC last week said provisional data showed that 2020 was a record year for drug overdose deaths with 93,331, up 29% from a year earlier. Opioids were involved in 74.7%, or 69,710, of those fatalities.

* Price Action: MCK shares are up 6.5% at $200.53, and ABC shares are +6.1% at $119.45, and CAH stock is +6.4% at $59.62 in the market session on the last check Tuesday.