Purdue Pharma, the maker of the heavy and addictive pain reliever OxyContin, has reached an agreement with eight states over a multibillion-dollar settlement. In September, a settlement was already reached with about 3,000 parties infected, but the countries did not agree at the time.

Purdue Pharma used extensive marketing to disguise addiction risks. The company declared bankruptcy after hundreds of lawsuits were filed against it. In September, it was agreed to terminate Purdue Pharma and use its assets To set up a new company†

Any profits from that company will be invested in government projects against addiction. The Sackler family, which owns the company, will contribute $4 billion (about $3.6 billion), provided they are not sued.

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The eight nations found this compromise too lenient. The judge agreed with them and took in the middle of the settlement†

In the new settlement, the agreement remains that a new company will be formed without Sacklers. The amount that the family will now have to pay could be about $6 billion. In turn, they avoid civil lawsuits. The risk of criminal prosecution remains.

Victims and families of OxyContin victims will also be given the opportunity to testify in court against members of the Sackler family. They haven’t got that chance yet.

The new agreement still needs to be approved by a judge.