Over the next eighteen years, Johnson and Johnson, Cardinal, McKesson, and Amerisource Bergen will pay a total of $26-billion nationally.
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong says the majority of the money must be used for treatment of people who became addicted to opioids, and for addiction prevention.
" What really strikes all of us every day is the size and scale of this crisis. It is a crisis that apart from the COVID pandemic, I think we can all recognize as the worst public health crisis in America," Tong said.
As part of the agreement, Johnson & Johnson will stop making opioid painkillers. The company was accused of misleading doctors and patients about how addictive its pain medication was.
The distribution companies have agreed to crack down on suspicious opioid orders from pharmacies. They were accused of ignoring signs that some of the medication they were distributing was being siphoned off for illegal sale.
Cities and towns that took part in the lawsuit will have to sign off on the deal, as will large cities.
States face a 30 day deadline to approve the settlement, cities and towns have 120 days to decide if they will accept it.
