(Reuters) - Johnson & Johnson <JNJ.N> said on Tuesday it will pay $20.4 million to settle claims by two Ohio counties in a lawsuit that accused the drugmaker of contributing to an U.S. opioid addiction epidemic.
The company said in a statement the settlement removes it from a federal trial against multiple manufacturers and distributors scheduled to begin on Oct. 21..
J&J will pay $10 million to Cuyahoga and Summit counties, reimburse $5 million of their legal and other expenses and provide $5.4 million to non-profit organizations that run opioid-related programs in the counties.
On Monday, Mallinckrodt Plc <MNK.N> finalised a $24 million settlement agreement with the same two counties.
Endo International Plc <ENDP.O> and Allergan Plc <AGN.N> also settled with the two counties in August to avoid going to trial.
Remaining defendants in the Oct. 21 trial include McKesson Corp <MCK.N>, AmerisourceBergen <ABC.N>, Cardinal Health <CAH.N>, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd <TEVA.TA> , Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc <WBA.O> and Henry Schein Inc <HSIC.O>.
Earlier in the year, an Oklahoma judge ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $572.1 million to the state for its part in fuelling an opioid epidemic by deceptively marketing addictive painkillers.
(Reporting by Shubham Kalia in Bengaluru; additional reporting by Nate Raymond; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Cynthia Osterman)
