The trustee overseeing the bankruptcy of a Massachusetts pharmacy linked to a 2012 meningitis outbreak that killed 64 people filed a plan that would set aside at least $135 million to compensate victims and their families, Reuters reported yesterday. The plan was filed after a federal bankruptcy court in July approved a deal to settle scores of lawsuits against New England Compounding Center (NECC). NECC shut down in October 2012 after authorities linked it to the worst outbreak of fungal meningitis in U.S. history due to drugs it shipped to health providers across the country. The company filed for bankruptcy two months later. Owners of NECC, which produced a tainted steroid that sickened more than 700 people in 20 states, have already contributed nearly $50 million to the NECC estate for eventual distribution and are expected to contribute additional sums through tax refunds and the sale of a related business.
