Walmart agrees to pay Texas $168M in opioid settlement

AUSTIN (CBSNewsTexas.com) - Walmart reached a $168 million settlement with the Office of the Attorney General of Texas, who sued the retailer for its practices that "exacerbated the opioid epidemic in the state of Texas and across the nation."

The lawsuit accused Walmart of contributing to the crisis with negligent practices pertaining to "opioid marketing, selling, and dispensing."

In a statement, the office said it's encouraging anyone affected, such as those in local governments and county governments in the Texas Opioids Multidistrict Litigation, to sign on the settlement for benefits and opioid remediation funds. The deadline for all Texas Political Subdivisions to sign is July 31. You can visit the OAG's website here for more information.

Last year, Attorney General Ken Paxton secured $1.167 billion in a $26 billion opioid settlement with the three major U.S. pharmaceutical distributors. Cardinal Health, McKesson Corp. and AmerisourceBergen were sued for their role in creating and fueling the nationwide opioid epidemic.