| If you're one of the tens of thousands of families that lost a loved one to the opioid epidemic, putting the drugmakers who sold the pain pills out of business may feel like the only just conclusion. But it's not that simple. Fixing the opioid crisis in the U.S. is going to take money. The thousands of lawsuits against drugmakers, distributors and pharmacies are about more than justice. They're about paying for rehab services, fixing cop cars and buying naloxone for first responders who find somebody in a bathroom overdosed, barely breathing. It's a battle that will take years and cost billions of dollars. And to get those billions, state, county and city officials need the companies to keep operating. One projection puts the liabilities at $150 billion. All of that cash will need to be paid out over years, or decades. The deal drugmakers like Purdue Pharma are pitching is this: Let us stay in business, and we'll keep paying you what you need. The company offered up a multibillion-dollar settlement that would keep it alive, run by a trust, and allow the Sackler family to hang on to a portion of their fortune. Forcing the company to shutter could leave states and cities with far less than they need. That may not be satisfying, but it's reality. — Riley Griffin Here's what else we're watching: Vaping seizures. An FDA investigation into whether vaping can cause seizures in some users was triggered by a handful of reports of people who had been using Juul devices, a new worry for the startup. Still rich. Even if the Sackler family that owns Purdue Pharma has to pay billions of dollars in an opoid settlement, they'll still be billionaires. Fentanyl fight. China says the U.S. is using fentanyl abuse as a political tool to help fight its trade war against the Asian economic giant. Listen up. Season 3 of our podcast is coming next month! We're dig into the scary world of superbugs and the effort to fight them. Subscribe here on Apple devices, and here on Android.  Got this newsletter forwarded to you? Sign up to get it every Thursday by clicking here.
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