Illinois gets $760 million as part of Johnson & Johnson opioid settlement

Illinois will receive about $760 million from a nationwide settlement finalized Friday with drugmaker Johnson & Johnson and three major drug distributors over their role in the opioid addiction crisis.

The money will come from a $26 billion legal settlement announced last year.

The state's portion will be distributed to local governments to combat the opioid crisis, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said Friday.

Checks could be cut as soon as April, but none of the money will go directly to opioid victims or their families.

"The opioid epidemic has destroyed countless lives and families throughout our state and devastated communities and it's imperative that the resources reach these areas and be used to abate the problem," Raoul said Friday during a news conference.

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