Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt today announced the final approval of a $26 billion opioid settlement with the nation’s three major pharmaceutical distributors and manufacturer Johnson & Johnson, clearing the way for the release of funds to states and local governments to treat and prevent opioid addiction. The agreement with distributors Cardinal Health, Inc., McKesson Corporation, and AmerisourceBergen Corporation and drug maker Johnson & Johnson concludes a three-year effort to resolve more than 4,000 claims made against the companies by states and local governments. It is the second largest multistate settlement agreement in U.S. history, second only to the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement reached by state attorneys general in 1998.