COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine says about 100 lawyers and other interested parties have made a "positive start" on deciding how the state ultimately might spend millions of dollars it could receive from settlements in the national opioid litigation.
The Republican governor told The Associated Press he hopes the meeting he convened Wednesday involving the state attorney general, lawyers for cities and counties, the state health director and others can serve as a national model.
The nation's three biggest drug distributors and a major drugmaker agreed Monday to a $260 million settlement over the toll taken by opioids in two Ohio counties, averting the first federal trial over the crisis.
DeWine said Summit and Cuyahoga (ky-uh-HOH'-guh) counties' money is theirs to spend. He envisions developing a state-specific plan for future payouts.
