Va. Treatment Programs Get OxyContin Settlement Money

Virginia officials recently awarded $650,000 in grants to addiction treatment and prevention programs, distributing money from a settlement with the makers of the powerful painkiller OxyContin, the Bluefield Daily Telegraph reported Jan. 30.

Among the recipients of funding from the settlement between the Virginia Attorney General's office and Purdue Pharma were the Appalachian Substance Abuse Coalition, which received $200,000 to deliver treatment and prevention services, and the state Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services, which received $306,000. The state Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy received $150,000 to provide treatment to coal miners who test positive for drugs.

The money came from Virginia's share of Purdue Pharma's payment to settle a lawsuit filed by the attorneys general of 26 states and the District of Columbia over the promotion and marketing of OxyContin.