Over the past decade, thousands of governments around the U.S., including tribal governments, sued the drug industry for its alleged role fueling the opioid crisis.
In the end, most companies involved in the opioid trade, including name brand companies such as Johnson & Johnson and Walmart, agreed to national settlements,
cash payouts worth more than $50 billion.
Principal Chief Hoskin says his tribe's share of that money, roughly $100 million dollars, has revolutionized addiction care for the Cherokee.
"The suffering would have continued, our inability to directly provide care would have been very limited. And now that's completely changed," he said.
At a ceremony last month, Cherokee leaders unveiled the first major project, an in-patient addiction recovery center planned for Tahlequah.
