RALEIGH — Attorney General Josh Stein recently announced a $102.5 million multi-state settlement with Indivior Inc., the maker of opioid use disorder treatment drug Suboxone, over its alleged monopoly tactics. North Carolina’s share is $2.96 million.

“When drug companies manipulate the market to make more money, they put people’s lives on the line,” Stein said. “It’s wrong and against the law. That’s why my fellow state attorneys general and I have taken action. This agreement will help ensure that people who need life-saving medication to address their substance use disorder can get it.”

In 2016, Stein and a bipartisan group of 41 other attorneys general filed a complaint alleging Indivior tried to preserve its drug monopoly by illegally switching the Suboxone market from tablets to film and attempting to destroy the market for tablets.  

The trial had been set for September. The agreement will now be submitted to the court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania for approval. In addition to the payment, Indivior is also required to comply with negotiated injunctive terms that include disclosing to the states all of the citizen petitions to the FDA, introduction of new products, or if there is a change in corporate control. This information will help the attorneys general ensure that Indivior does not engage in the same alleged unlawful conduct again.