Kentucky reaches $110 million settlement with Kroger for its role in opioid epidemic

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The commonwealth of Kentucky reached a $110 million settlement with Kroger for its role in the opioid crisis.

Attorney General Russell Coleman announced the settlement in a news conference Thursday morning.

"For over a decade, Kroger tragically fed the flames of the drug addiction fire that rages across every county of our Commonwealth," Coleman said in a news release. "But this devastation isn’t the end of the story: Kentucky is resilient, and we get back up, no matter how many times we are knocked down. Today, with $110 million invested in recovery efforts in Kentucky, Kroger has agreed to be part of the solution."

In February, Coleman filed the lawsuit against Kroger, claiming its pharmacies helped fuel the state's deadly opioid addiction crisis.

The lawsuit said Kroger's 100+ Kentucky pharmacies were responsible for over 11% of all opioid pills dispensed in the state between 2006-19. It amounted to hundreds of millions of doses inundating Kentucky communities without reasonable safeguards, the suit said.

The lawsuit was filed in Bullitt County Circuit Court in Shepherdsville, 20 miles south of Louisville. Among other things, the suit sought civil penalties of $2,000 against the grocery chain for each alleged willful violation of the Kentucky Consumer Protection Act.

Half of that $110 million will be distributed to Kentucky counties and municipalities. A formula will decide how much money each county receives based off population and impact.

The other half will go toward the Kentucky Opioid Abatement Advisory Committee for grants toward treatment and recovery initiatives.

The settlement agreement mentioned 15% of all payments referenced in the opioid abatement trust fund, which will go toward the Attorney General's Office for cost of investigation and litigation, per KRS 48.005.

Coleman said Kroger's lack of internal monitoring system made it impossible to track or report suspicious drug activity.

"These settlement dollars will have a massive impact on Kentucky," he said in a news release. "I want to recognize the people who are the driving force behind bringing them here. Thank you for the late nights away from your families, long weekends and many months you’ve dedicated to this case. Our Commonwealth could not have asked for better representation. These are three people who are from areas of our Commonwealth particularly hard hit by the drug crisis; they care deeply about the issue and those affected."

In a statement, a Kroger spokesperson said the company is "pleased to have reached a settlement.

"However, the claims that Kroger did not have internal training or guardrails around filling prescriptions for opioids are patently false," the spokesperson said. "The company has long provided associates throughout the pharmacy with robust training, as well as tools to assist pharmacists in their professional judgement, including, being the first major retail pharmacy to integrate state prescription drug monitoring directly into our pharmacy system.

"Our more than 100 pharmacies across Kentucky provide our customers with access to expert care, often in areas where healthcare is difficult to access. We will continue to do our part to fight opioid misuse across the U.S. while providing access to fresh, affordable food to families."

The Bluegrass State has been hard hit by the nation's overdose crisis, and a series of Kentucky attorneys general from both political parties — including now-Gov. Andy Beshear, a Democrat — aggressively pursued legal action against companies that make or distribute opioid-based medication. Coleman, a Republican who took office at the start of this year, continued the trend with his suit against Kroger — a prominent corporate brand in Kentucky.

Overdose fatalities in Kentucky surpassed 2,000 again in 2022 but were down from the prior year, Beshear said in a 2023 announcement. Increased use of fentanyl — a powerful synthetic opioid — is blamed as a key factor behind the state’s chronically high overdose death toll.

To read the full settlement announced Thursday, see below: