Greenup County court approves participation in multiple national opioid settlements

Greenup County’s fiscal court voted July 5 to authorize county participation in several national opioid settlement agreements, the county attorney said.

County Attorney Matthew Warnick told the court that the county has previously signed on to some settlements and that new opportunities had emerged. “These, some of these plans that they're looking to settle, we're talking about, one is $8,000,000,000. Another one is, like, $1,200,000,000,” Warnick said on the record, referring to the size of national settlement pools. Warnick asked the court to allow the county to sign onto the Purdue plan, authorize a government‑entity settlement related to Sadler, participate in a nine‑defendant settlement, and join litigation participation as to Sandoz.

Court members moved, seconded and approved each request; the minutes record the outcome as “Ayes have it” for each motion. The approvals grant the county attorney permission to sign documents and keep Greenup County “in the mix,” as Warnick put it, so the county can submit documentation to claim any local share distributed through national settlement agreements.

Why it matters: opioid settlements have created national settlement pools that distribute funds to counties and municipalities that sign on and meet documentation and allocation rules. The court’s votes allow Greenup County to pursue potential recovery for costs tied to the opioid crisis.

What the record shows: Warnick provided plan names and described the county’s intention to participate; the court’s approvals were procedural authorizations to enter those agreements. The transcript records the national plan figures as stated by Warnick; the county’s potential share from those settlements was not stated in the meeting record and is not specified in county minutes.