Purdue Pharma agrees to $270M opioid settlement with Oklahoma

Purdue Pharma, the OxyContin maker accused of helping spark and fuel the nation's opioid epidemic, has reportedly agreed to pay $270 million to settle a lawsuit with Oklahoma.

The settlement is the first resolution of hundreds of lawsuits filed by state and local governments across the country, and it could provide a measuring stick for others seeking redress for the damages inflicted by opioids.

The settlement comes two months before Purdue, Johnson & Johnson and Teva Pharmaceutical were scheduled to go to trial for promoting OxyContin to physicians. The Oklahoma Supreme Court on Monday refused to delay the trial, at which details were expected to emerge of Purdue's role in pushing a drug it knew was highly addictive.

A spokesperson for Purdue declined to comment, as did spokespeople for Teva and Johnson & Johnson.

Details of the settlement were first reported by Bloomberg News.