Beware of money from Purdue case

Your commentary in the New Haven Register Oct. 24 talks about Purdue suits and how state Attorney General William Tong is trying to get his claws into the settlements. After what Connecticut did with the tobacco settlements, this is just another effort by Connecticut legislature to get their hands on these types of settlements against unpopular product and shovel the money into the general fund.

AG Tong says, “This is not about the money, it’s about the justice.” The multibilliondollar settlement against the tobacco industry wasn’t supposed to be about the money, either. Connecticut has been getting multimillions yearly that was supposed to go to antismoking education and support. Connecticut ranks at the bottom of other states with less than 2 percent going for the intended purpose. The rest gets funneled into the general fund. Connecticut even went so far to issue Revenue Anticipation Bonds to get their hands on the money ahead of time. Once again, it went into the general fund. If ever there was a time to be upset with what our state legislature is doing with our money, this is it!

So here we go again, billions of settlement dollars going not to the affected but to the states. And there is Connecticut trying to jump on the bandwagon and guess where the money would end up?

I’m copying my state rep and senator and asking them to monitor this and make sure any money that comes out of ends up in the right place, to support education and support of those that are affected by the problems caused by drug misuse and addiction.

Bob Reil Bethany