Settlement percent of population

  
Note 10. Legal Matters and ContingenciesIn the ordinary course of its business, the Company becomes involved in lawsuits, administrative proceedings, government subpoenas, government investigations, stockholder demands, and other disputes, including antitrust, commercial, product liability, intellectual property, regulatory, employment discrimination, and other matters. Significant damages or penalties may be sought from the Company in some matters, and some matters may require years for the Company to resolve. The Company records a reserve for these matters when it is both probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated.For those matters for which the Company has not recognized a liability, the Company cannot predict the outcome of their impact on the Company as uncertainty remains with regard to whether such matters will proceed to trial, whether settlements will be reached, and the amount and terms of any such settlements. Outcomes may include settlements in significant amounts that are not currently estimable, limitations on the Company's conduct, the imposition of corporate integrity agreement obligations, consent decrees, and/or other civil and criminal penalties. From time to time, the Company is also involved in disputes with its customers, which the Company generally seeks to resolve through commercial negotiations. If negotiations are unsuccessful, the parties may litigate the dispute or otherwise attempt to settle the matter.With respect to the specific legal proceedings and claims described below, unless otherwise noted, the amount or range of possible losses is not reasonably estimable. There can be no assurance that the settlement, resolution, or other outcome of one or more matters, including the matters set forth below, during any subsequent reporting period will not have a material adverse effect on the Company's results of operations or cash flows for that period or on the Company's financial condition.Opioid Lawsuits and InvestigationsA significant number of counties, municipalities, and other governmental entities in a majority of U.S. states and Puerto Rico, as well as numerous states and tribes, have filed lawsuits in various federal, state and other courts against pharmaceutical wholesale distributors (including the Company and certain subsidiaries, such as AmerisourceBergen Drug Corporation ("ABDC") and H.D. Smith), pharmaceutical manufacturers, retail pharmacy chains, medical practices, and physicians relating to the distribution of prescription opioid pain medications. Other lawsuits regarding the distribution of prescription opioid pain medications have been filed by: third-party payors and similar entities; hospitals; hospital groups; and individuals, including cases styled as putative class actions. The lawsuits, which have been and continue to be filed in federal, state, and other courts, generally allege violations of controlled substance laws and various other statutes as well as common law claims, including negligence, public nuisance, and unjust enrichment, and seek equitable relief and monetary damages. An initial group of cases was consolidated for Multidistrict Litigation ("MDL") proceedings before the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio (the "Court") in December 2017. Additional cases were added to the MDL from 2018 through 2022. In April 2018, the Court issued an order creating a litigation track, which includes dispositive motion practice, discovery, and trials in certain bellwether jurisdictions. In December 2018, the Court issued an order selecting two cases for a second bellwether discovery and trial track. In November 2019 and January 2020, the Court filed Suggestions of Remand with the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation that identified four cases filed against the Company, including the two cases in the second bellwether trial track, for potential transfer from the MDL back to federal courts in California, Oklahoma, and West Virginia for the completion of discovery, motion practice, and trial. All four cases were remanded to those federal district courts. Trial in the two consolidated cases in West Virginia commenced in May 2021 and concluded in July 2021. On July 4, 2022, the court entered judgment in favor of the defendants, including the Company. The plaintiffs filed an appeal of the court's decision on August 2, 2022. The Oklahoma case, in which the plaintiff was the Cherokee Nation, was resolved through a settlement with the Cherokee Nation, as announced on September 28, 2021. The California case, in which the plaintiff was the City and County of San Francisco, was resolved pursuant to the comprehensive settlement reached with the majority of U.S. states, including California, as described below, and all claims against the Company have been dismissed in both cases. On July 21, 2021, the Company announced that it and the two other national pharmaceutical distributors had negotiated a comprehensive settlement agreement that, if all conditions were satisfied, would result in the resolution of a substantial majority of opioid lawsuits filed by state and local governmental entities. On April 2, 2022, the settlement agreement became effective as to the Company and 46 settling states (the "Settling States"), as well as over 98% by population of the eligible political subdivisions in the Settling States. The States of Washington and Oklahoma intend to join the comprehensive settlement after certain conditions have been met in those states. Pursuant to the comprehensive settlement agreement and related agreements with Settling States, including previously disclosed settlement agreements with Florida, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island and Texas, the Company will pay approximately $5.9 billion over 18 years and comply with other requirements, including establishment of a clearinghouse that will consolidate data from all three national distributors. The exact payment amount will depend on several factors, including the extent to which states take action to foreclose opioid lawsuits by subdivisions (e.g., laws barring opioid lawsuits by subdivisions), and the extent to which subdivisions in Settling States file 17
