A judge on Tuesday formally approved a $7 billion settlement between the maker of OxyContin and people with addiction, states, counties and Native American tribes. There have been thousands of lawsuits filed.

Purdue Pharma was sued for its role in the opioid crisis that has killed more than 900,000 people in the U.S. since 1999, according to The Associated Press.

The deal requires the Sackler family, owner of Purdue Pharma, to give up to $7 billion over 15 years and relinquish ownership of the drugmaker.

Most of the money will go to government entities to fight the opioid crisis.

The new agreement replaces one the U.S. Supreme Court rejected last year, finding it would have improperly protected members of the family against future lawsuits.

The company will also give its assets to Knoa Pharma, a public benefit company that will develop and distribute opioid overdose reversal and addiction medications.

The deal, which U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean Lane said he would accept last week, is among the largest in a series of opioid settlements brought by state and local governments against drugmakers, wholesalers and pharmacies that totaled approximately $50 billion.

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