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Lorain and Dayton Lawsuits
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Dayton, Ohio, is the latest local government to sue drug makers over opioids
Jun 5, 2017 | STAT
By Ed Silverman
The city of Dayton, Ohio, has become the latest local government to file a lawsuit accusing several drug makers of fanning the opioid epidemic by allegedly downplaying risks and improperly encouraging prescribing of the addictive painkillers. At the same time, the city is also targeting a few large wholesalers and some doctors for failing to stop the widespread availability of the pills. -
5 things to know about Dayton’s lawsuit against drug companies
Jun 6, 2017 | Dayton Daily News
By Cory Frolik
The city of Dayton on Monday announced it is filing a 233-page lawsuit against more than a dozen drug companies, distributors and physicians for allegedly causing the opiate epidemic in the state. -
Two Ohio mayors file lawsuit against painkiller industry giants
Jun 5, 2017 | Block News Alliance
By Jim Provance and Lauren Lindstrom
Contending that last week’s lawsuit filed by the state of Ohio didn’t go far enough, the mayors of Dayton and Lorain on Monday announced they are pursuing their own litigation against the opiate painkiller industry. -
Dayton, Lorain to sue opioid makers, drug distributors and doctors
Jun 5, 2017 | Cleveland.com
By Jackie Borchardt
The cities of Lorain and Dayton plan to file suit against pharmaceutical companies, opioid drug distributors and physicians they say are responsible for Ohio's opioid addiction and overdose crisis. -
Doctors, Cardinal Health included in cities’ lawsuits over opioid epidemic
Jun 5, 2017 | The Columbus Dispatch
By Alan Johnson
Going further than last week’s state lawsuit against drug makers, the cities of Dayton and Lorain also sued the companies and doctors Monday who spread opioids that made Ohio the drug overdose capital of America. -
Dayton suing drug companies, distributors, docs over opioid epidemic
Jun 5, 2017 | Ohio Business Journal
By Tristen Navera
The city of Dayton is launching a lawsuit against drug companies, distributors and physicians over the continuing opioid crisis. -
Will Cincinnati join the ranks of Ohio cities suing opioid makers?
Jun 5, 2017 | Cincinnati Inquirer
By Camer
Dayton filed suit against several major opioid manufacturers Monday. Lorain has also joined in an effort to fight the opioid epidemic. Will Cincinnati be next? -
Lorain One of Two OH Cities Suing Drug Manufacturers and Distributors
Jun 6, 2017 | Appsforpcdaily.com
By Beatrice Santos
City government officials from around the state are mounting a charge again opioid drug companies, following the state's announcement to sue manufacturers of powerful painkillers. "We have lost so many people". The state's lawsuit, however, only targets five opioid manufacturers. "We need action now". Whaley also said that the city of Lorain will soon file a lawsuit against -
Lorain to sue drug makers over heroin, opioid addictions
Jun 5, 2017 | The Morning Journal
By Richard Payerchin
The city of Lorain hopes to take drug makers to court to recover costs the city spends to deal with the continuing heroin epidemic. -
City of Dayton sues drug makers for role in overdose epidemic
Jun 6, 2017 | Dayton Daily News
By Cornelius Frolik
The city of Dayton is suing more than a dozen pharmaceutical companies, distributors and pain specialists it alleges caused the opioid crisis that has killed thousands of Ohioans, drained public resources and wasted taxpayer dollars. -
Lorain city council votes to sue opioid manufacturers
Jun 5, 2017 | WJW-FOX (Cleveland, OH)
By Kevin Freeman
The battle against the opioid epidemic could be moving from the streets to the court-house. The mayor of Lorain is one of two Ohio mayors who wants to sue drug manufacturers. -
Courtroom is latest front in opioid battle, Lorain plans to sue makers, distributors of painkillers
Jun 6, 2017 | WEWS-ABC (Cleveland, OH)
By Derick Waller
Susan Kannel’s heroin addiction didn’t start with a cliche visit to a back-alley drug dealer. Instead, she said it began in her Cleveland home, where she injured her back taking her son’s bike down a flight of stairs. -
Dayton to file suit against pharmaceutical companies, distributors in opioid crisis
Jun 5, 2017 | WGRT-FOX
By Christian Hauser
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley says the drug companies, their distributors and some physicians are responsible for the opioid crisis so the city has filed a lawsuit against them. -
Dayton files lawsuit against drug companies
Jun 6, 2017 | WDTN-TV (Dayton, OH)
By Paul Rodzinka
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley announced the city filed its own lawsuit against drug companies over the opioid crisis. -
Dayton, Lorain To Sue Drug Companies For Opioid Epidemic Costs
Jun 6, 2017 | 91.3 WYSO
By Jess Mador
Less than a week after Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced the state is suing five pharmaceutical companies for their role in the opioid epidemic, the city of Dayton is bringing its own suit. Mayor Nan Whaley Monday announced the lawsuit, which she says is needed to recover costs associated with police, fire, EMS and addiction treatment services. -
Dayton and Lorain Announce They're Suing Two Dozen Painkiller Manufacturers and Distributors
Jun 5, 2017 | 89.7 WKSU
By Andy Chow
City officials around the state are mounting a charge again opioid drug companies, following the state’s announcement to sue manufacturers of powerful painkillers.
National Coverage
Local Coverage
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Dayton, Ohio, is the latest local government to sue drug makers over opioids
Jun 5, 2017 | STAT
By Ed Silverman
The city of Dayton, Ohio, has become the latest local government to file a lawsuit accusing several drug makers of fanning the opioid epidemic by allegedly downplaying risks and improperly encouraging prescribing of the addictive painkillers. At the same time, the city is also targeting a few large wholesalers and some doctors for failing to stop the widespread availability of the pills.
In discussing the lawsuit, Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley argued that Dayton wants the companies to reimburse the city for various expenses that are regularly undertaken to the cope with the opioid epidemic. So far this year, city employees have responded to more than 1,800 calls related to suspected overdoses and are on track to more than double overdose-related responses from last year.
“There’s no end in sight to the cost to taxpayers — EMS runs, police, peer-to-peer counseling — have just been enormous,” Whaley told us. “And we want everyone responsible for this to be held accountable — every link in the chain. This is just a racket for drug companies to make money and taxpayers are footing the bill and we’re tired of it.”
Among the drug makers named are Purdue Pharma, Teva Pharmaceuticals, Allergan, Endo Pharmaceuticals, and several Johnson & Johnson units. The distributors include the three largest drug wholesalers in the U.S.: McKesson, Cardinal Health, and AmerisourceBergen. And four doctors, who have been named in lawsuits filed by other local governments, were also named.
An Allergan wrote us that the company “has a history of supporting — and continues to support — the safe, responsible use of prescription medications,” including opioids. We asked the other companies for comment and will update you accordingly.
The lawsuit is only the latest to be filed by a local government as opioid painkillers continue to be blamed for fueling addiction and crime, and for serving as a bridge to a growing heroin trade. Every day, more than 40 Americans die from overdoses of opioid painkillers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And each year, 2 million people abuse or misuse the drugs.
Similar lawsuits have been filed by several New York counties; the city of Chicago; Orange and Santa Clara counties in California; and the state of Mississippi. The city of Lorain, Ohio, plans to file a lawsuit shortly, according to a statement by its mayor. And other local governments are investigating the same concerns or exploring legal action, as well, according to sources.
Meanwhile, the city of Everett, Wash., last month took a new approach in a lawsuit, claiming Purdue Pharma diverted its OxyContin painkiller to the black market through drug rings and pill mills. And the Cherokee Nation is suing CVS Health, Walgreens, and other retailers, alleging the companies didn’t do enough to stop prescription painkillers from flooding the tribal community.
Last week, in fact, the Ohio Attorney General filed such a lawsuit, claiming the same drug makers used false marketing that included misleading ads in medical journals and the use of physicians and front groups to boost prescriptions for their medicines. And he calculated that, in 2012, the total cost of the opioid problem to the state averaged $5.4 million per day in medical and work loss expenses.
Dayton officials similarly complained of being “forced to expend exorbitant amounts of money.” The lawsuit, the city contended, is “about one thing: corporate greed. The [companies] put their desire for profits above the health and well-being of the city of Dayton consumers.” The lawsuit, however, does not specify the amount of money Dayton claims to have spent, although a fact sheet says $340,000 was spent last year on police and fire personnel and equipment.
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5 things to know about Dayton’s lawsuit against drug companies
Jun 6, 2017 | Dayton Daily News
By Cory Frolik
The city of Dayton on Monday announced it is filing a 233-page lawsuit against more than a dozen drug companies, distributors and physicians for allegedly causing the opiate epidemic in the state.
Dayton becomes the first city in Ohio to file a suit against drug makers and distributors for their alleged role in the drug crisis, though the city of Lorain is expected to sue, and Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine already has filed a civil action against five companies.
Here are some of the highlights from Dayton’s lawsuit and some other important facts to know:
1. THE COMPLAINT: The city of Dayton claims drug companies and distributors engaged in an industry-wide campaign to mislead the public and consumers about the risks and benefits of opiate medications, similar to how cigarette manufacturers for years tried to conceal the health dangers of smoking. The city accuses companies of using highly deceptive advertisements and marketing to convince the public and prescribers that opiate drugs could treat a wide range of medical issues with limited risk of dependence. The city also accuses drug companies of making claims about their products that have no scientific evidence to support (improving patients’ function and quality of life) or omitting important information (the lack of studies about prolonged use of opioids).
2. THE COSTS: The city of Dayton said it has been required to spend millions of dollars each year to combat “the public nuisance” of opiate addiction created by the drug companies and distributors. Costs to the city include law enforcement, services for families and children, public assistance and lost productivity, according to the lawsuit. The city has increased spending on programs to address and reduce drug abuse.
3. TROUBLING NUMBERS: Americans represent less than 5 percent of the global population but consume 80 percent of the opioids worldwide, the lawsuit states. Dayton police, fire and EMS personnel this year have responded to more than 1,800 calls for service related to suspected drug overdoses, which is on track to double last year’s total. First responders have administered more than 7,600 milligrams of Narcan this year, which is already 50 percent more than they used in 2016. Montgomery County has already had more fatal drug overdoses this year than in 2016, which was a record-breaking year.
4. OTHER LAWSUITS: Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine last week announced that the state is suing five pharmaceutical companies for fraudulent marketing. DeWine said the drug manufacturers deceived prescribers by falsely claiming that opioids are not addictive, addiction is easy to overcome and drug dependence can be treated with more opioids. The city of Lorain also plans to file a lawsuit against drug manufacturers to “pursue justice” for Ohio communities ravaged by opiate addiction, officials said. DeWine and Whaley are both running for Ohio governor in 2018 and have made battling opiates a big part of their platforms.
5. COMPANIES RESPOND: Some of the drug companies named in the city’s lawsuit have denied promoting any unsafe usage of their medications. Janssen North America Pharmaceuticals Communication said more than 100 million American adults suffer from chronic pain and its opioid pain medications gives doctors and patients an option for managing pain. A few companies said they are concerned about the opioid crisis and want to help combat drug addiction, but believe their products are valuable when used responsibly. Drug company Teva says it is committed to the appropriate promotion and use of opioids and has programs in place that educate prescribers, pharmacists and patients on the responsible and safe use of its products.
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Two Ohio mayors file lawsuit against painkiller industry giants
Jun 5, 2017 | Block News Alliance
By Jim Provance and Lauren Lindstrom
Contending that last week’s lawsuit filed by the state of Ohio didn’t go far enough, the mayors of Dayton and Lorain on Monday announced they are pursuing their own litigation against the opiate painkiller industry.
“The big drug companies have stuck profits in their wallets, and they have passed the bill on to us … ,” Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley said during a Dayton news conference. “This crisis has gone on for far too long. We’ve gotten too little help from the state. … Even the state’s lawsuit does not go far enough to hold responsible all the bad actors that created this epidemic.
“So, as our state’s broken partnerships with communities continue, we are again taking matters into our own hands to get this done right and to make the drug companies and distributors who created this mess clean it up,” she said.
In a statement, Lorain Mayor Chase Ritenauer urged other cities to join them.
“Cities big and small across Ohio are struggling to serve our citizens with the increasing number of accidental overdoses,” he said. “It is time that the companies and distributors who started this epidemic take responsibility for the communities that have been ravaged as a result of the medications they produce.”
Dayton filed its suit Monday in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court. Lorain City Council was expected to discuss its suit Monday night.
Addiction numbers have skyrocketed in recent years. As the state shut down so-called pill mills in southern Ohio and worked to better monitor the writing of prescriptions for opiate painkillers, addicts have sometimes turned to heroin as a cheaper and easier-to-obtain alternative.
The problem has emerged as an issue in the 2018 elections.
Last week Attorney General Mike DeWine, an expected Republican candidate for governor, sued five major opioid manufacturers and their subsidiaries, claiming their marketing downplayed addiction risks while playing up drug benefits.
The state’s suit named as defendants Purdue Pharma, Endo Health Solutions, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and its subsidiary Cephalon, Johnson & Johnson and subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceuticals, and Allergan. The companies have been responsible for making and selling numerous opiate painkillers like Oxycontin, Percocet, Percodan, and Dilaudid.
The 220-page lawsuit filed by Dayton cast a much wider net. It named the same manufacturers, additional subsidiaries, and distributors — Actavis, Watson Pharmaceuticals, McKesson Corporation, Cardinal Health, Inc., and AmerisourceBergen Corp.
It also named individual physicians who, it claimed, were instrumental in promoting opioids: Russell Portenoy of New York; Scott Fishman of California, and Perry Fine and Lynn Webster, both of Utah.
“The claims are based on suspect trade practices, consumer sales practices in which they marketed the products and solicited physicians to write prescriptions,” said Margaret Metzinger, a partner with the Cleveland law firm of Climaco, Wilcox, Cappa, Garofoli Co., LPA, which is representing Dayton in the case.
“They were marketed overall as not being addictive and with having no limits on the amount a person could take without harmful side effects,” she said.
The suit seeks an unspecified amount of compensatory and punitive damages. Unlike the state’s lawsuit, it does not not seek an injunction against such marketing practices.
Ms. Whaley recently announced her bid for the Democratic nomination for governor. Mr. Ritenauer has been mentioned as a potential Democratic candidate for state auditor or treasurer.
“For many years, Teva has been committed to the appropriate promotion and use of opioids…” Nancy Leone, a Teva spokesman, said in a written statement. “We have programs in place that educate prescribers, pharmacists, and patients on the responsible and safe use of these products. We are committed to working with the healthcare community, regulators and public officials to collaboratively find solutions.”
Mark Marmur, director of corporate affairs for Allergan, said in a written statement: “Allergan has a history of supporting, and continues to support, the safe, responsible use of prescription medications. This includes opioid medications, which when sold, prescribed, and used responsibly, play an appropriate role in pain relief for millions of Americans.”
Ellen Barry, spokesman for Dublin, Ohio-based Cardinal, said the company will defend itself vigorously in court.
“We operate as part of a multifaceted and highly regulated health care system — we do not promote, prescribe or dispense prescription medications to members of the public — and believe everyone in that chain, including us, must do their part, which is ultimately why we believe these copycat lawsuits filed against us are misguided, and will do nothing to stem the crisis,” she said.
Meeting with The Blade’s editorial board last week, Ms. Whaley said she didn’t think Mr. DeWine’s lawsuit was aggressive enough.
“I think you need to sue all the drug companies, not some of them, and sue the drug distributors,” she said.
Ms. Whaley also decried the way drug makers benefit from the epidemic she says they helped create by selling overdose-reversing drugs such as naloxone and drugs to manage opioid-induced constipation, among others.
“It’s a racket,” she said.
Toledo law director Adam Loukx declined to say whether the city is considering a similar lawsuit.
“All I can say at this point is we will take a close look at what the state and other cities are doing and make decisions after that,” he said.
More than 4,000 Ohioans died from opioid overdoses last year. In northwest Ohio, 263 people died across a 21-county region that includes in 19 in Ohio and two in southeast Michigan. That’s up from 215 in 2015, according to Dr. Robert Forney, chief toxicologist for the Lucas County Coroner’s Office.
Many of those were from the powerful synthetic opioid fentanyl, which has grown in popularity in recent years.
From January through May of this year, 882 overdose calls were reported by 911 dispatchers in Lucas County to the sheriff’s Drug Abuse Response Team, according to Lt. Robert Chromik, who leads the DART unit -- nearly six per day.
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Dayton, Lorain to sue opioid makers, drug distributors and doctors
Jun 5, 2017 | Cleveland.com
By Jackie Borchardt
The cities of Lorain and Dayton plan to file suit against pharmaceutical companies, opioid drug distributors and physicians they say are responsible for Ohio's opioid addiction and overdose crisis.
The lawsuit names as defendants:
five opioid manufacturers: Purdue Pharma, Endo Health Solutions, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and subsidiary Cephalon, Johnson & Johnson and subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceuticals and Allergan, formerly known as Actavis.
three distributors: McKesson Corporation, AmerisourceBergen Corporation and Ohio-based Cardinal Health.
four physicians associated with the drug companies: Russell Portenoy, Perry Fine, Scott Fishman and Lynn Webster.
The cities' legal threats follow a civil suit filed last week by Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine. The state's lawsuit, however, only targets the drug makers.
DeWine, a Republican expected to also run for governor, did not rule out going after drug distributors or others.
Whaley said the state's lawsuit does not go far enough.
"As our state's broken partnerships with our communities continue, we are again taking matters into our own hands to get this right and make the drug companies and distributors who created this mess to clean it up," Whaley said.
The complaint filed Monday in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court, like the state suit, alleges drug makers understated the risks and overstated the benefits of opioids through deceptive marketing practices.
Dayton's lawsuit also targets doctors who promoted wider opioid prescribing and distribution as consultants paid by the drug manufacturers. The doctors and associated front groups, the complaint says, developed "pro-opioid marketing pieces disguised as science" that misrepresented the risks and benefits of the highly addictive medications.
Distributors, the middlemen between drug makers and pharmacies, have paid millions in settlements in recent cases for not reporting inordinate amounts of painkillers. The complaint alleges the distributors shipped millions of doses of opioids into Dayton -- far more than necessary -- without questioning suspicious or excessive orders.
Ohio led the nation in overdose deaths in 2014, and 3,050 people died in 2015, according to state reports. Several counties have reported more deaths in 2016, with no signs of it slowing down this year.
The opiate epidemic claimed 666 lives in Cuyahoga County last year.County officials are projecting 775 deaths in 2017.
"Cities big and small across Ohio are struggling to serve our citizens with the increasing number of accidental overdoses," Lorain Mayor Chase Ritenauer said in a statement. "It is time that the companies and distributors who started this epidemic take responsibility for the communities that have been ravaged as a result of the medications they produce."
Dayton Police Chief Richard Biehl said the overdose death numbers don't tell the whole story.
Biehl said the Dayton Police Department responded to more than 1,800 calls for service so far this year, on track to respond to double the number of calls compared to 2016.
A greater percentage of opioid overdose deaths have come from heroin and fentanyl, as the state has placed restrictions on prescribers. But officials -- including Whaley and DeWine -- say most heroin users got hooked by first using prescription painkillers.
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Doctors, Cardinal Health included in cities’ lawsuits over opioid epidemic
Jun 5, 2017 | The Columbus Dispatch
By Alan Johnson
Going further than last week’s state lawsuit against drug makers, the cities of Dayton and Lorain also sued the companies and doctors Monday who spread opioids that made Ohio the drug overdose capital of America.
“This case is about one thing: corporate greed. Defendants put their desire for profits above the health and well-being of the City of Dayton consumers,” says the opening line of the 233-page lawsuit for Dayton.
The two cities join Attorney General Mike DeWine who last week filed a lawsuit against five drug manufacturers. DeWine did not sue the distributors, including Cardinal Health of Dublin, but he indicated that option is still under consideration.
Montgomery County, where Dayton is located, has been particularly hard hit by drug overdoses, with 348 fatal overdoses already this year, compared to 339 reported by the coroner for all of last year. Police and fire officials said at the press conference they are already running 50 percent ahead of last year’s numbers in overdoses calls and administration of naloxone, a drug used to interrupt overdoses and save lives.
Whaley said the cities are “taking matters into our own hands to get things done right ... We can’t wait for the state to do the right thing.”
The Dayton lawsuit, filed in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court, was filed against a number of drug manufacturers, along with Cardinal Health and other distributors, and four out-of-state doctors who were accused of encouraging the widespread use of narcotic pain pills. Fishman, for example, wrote “pro-opioid marketing pieces disguised as science,” the lawsuit says.
“The actions of defendants have created an environment where select physicians have sought to profit at the expense of their patients who become addicted to opioid pain medications, often accepting cash payments and ordering unnecessary medical tests.”
Dayton wants to recover the cost of law enforcement, educational, community and support programs related to the opioid epidemic.
Lorain Mayor Chase Ritenauer said in a statement, “Cities big and small across Ohio are struggling to serve our citizens with the increasing number of accidental overdoses. It is time that the companies and distributers who started this epidemic take responsibility for the communities that have been ravaged as a result of the medications they produce. It is my sincere hope that mayors across the state will join Mayor Whaley and me as we pursue justice for Ohio communities.”
Lorain County reported 132 overdose deaths last year, double the 2015 toll.
Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther’s office did not respond to questions on whether Columbus may join the lawsuit.
A number of other cities and counties have filed similar lawsuits, including Huntington, Kermit and Welch, West Virginia.; Chicago; Orange County and Santa Clara, California; and Everett, Washington.
The defendants aside from the doctors include Purdue Pharma; Teva Pharmaceuticals; Cephalon; Johnson & Johnson; Janssen Pharmaceuticals; Ortho-McNeilJanssen Pharmaceuticals; Endo Pharmaceuticals; Allergan (formerly Actavia); Watson Laboratories; McKesson Corp.; Cardinal Health; and Amerisourcebergen.
“Defendants, through a sophisticated and highly deceptive and unfair marketing campaign that began in the late 1990s, deepened around 2006, and continues to the present, set out to, and did, reverse the popular and medical understanding of opioids. Chronic opioid therapy—the prescribing of opioids to treat chronic pain long-term—is now commonplace,” the lawsuit says.
“It was defendants’ marketing—and not any medical breakthrough—that rationalized prescribing opioids for chronic pain and opened the floodgates of opioid use and abuse. The result has been catastrophic.”
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Dayton suing drug companies, distributors, docs over opioid epidemic
Jun 5, 2017 | Ohio Business Journal
By Tristen Navera
The city of Dayton is launching a lawsuit against drug companies, distributors and physicians over the continuing opioid crisis.
City officials announced the suit was filed electronically in Montgomery County Common Pleas court Monday, which will be larger in scope than the lawsuitlaunched by Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine last week. In a press conference, city leaders said the epidemic and rising rates of opioid abuse in the region stem from abuse of legal prescriptions.
"We are beyond a crisis, we have lost so many people, we are in a state of emergency, we need action now," Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley said. "We believe the drug companies made this mess, and it is time they start passing the buck
DeWine's suit alleges the drug companies engaged in fraudulent marketing regarding the risks and benefits of prescription opioids that fueled Ohio's opioid epidemic. That lawsuit, which focused on five leading prescription opioid manufacturers, "does not go far enough" to vindicate all of the parties affected, Whaley said, and Dayton's suit names over a dozen parties including distributors and other "links in the chain."
Other cities are expected follow suit, officials said, noting the city of Lorain in northeast Ohio is preparing a suit.
"Cities big and small across Ohio are struggling to serve our citizens with the increasing number of accidental overdoses," said Lorain Mayor Chase Ritenauerin a statement. "It is time that the companies and distributors who started this epidemic take responsibility for the communities that have been ravaged as a result of the medications they produce.
Dayton's police and fire departments have responded to 1,800 calls for service related to suspected overdose in 2017 — on track to be double last year. The amount of Narcan they have used is up 50 percent from all of 2016 as well, Dayton Police Chief Richard Biehl said.Montgomery COunty has seen 348 presumed accidental overdoses this year.
"This epidemic ... started with legal prescriptions," Biehl said, "It is taxing our public resources and there is no end in sight."
"It makes sure people on the ground will receive help in the suit," Whaley said.
The mayor, who is running a campaign for governor, said repeatedly in the conference the city doesn't think it's getting the support it needs from the state.
"We feel like if we don't sue, we don't get that justice," Whaley said.
The city has retained Climaco, Wilcox, Peca, and Garofoli of Cleveland as legal counsel.
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Will Cincinnati join the ranks of Ohio cities suing opioid makers?
Jun 5, 2017 | Cincinnati Inquirer
By Camer
Dayton filed suit against several major opioid manufacturers Monday. Lorain has also joined in an effort to fight the opioid epidemic. Will Cincinnati be next?
City of Cincinnati spokesman Rocky Merz said Monday city officials are aware of Dayton's lawsuit and the issue is "under review by the city solicitor."
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley announced the suit just days after Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced the state was suing five major drug manufacturers. Whaley and DeWine are both running for the Ohio governor's seat.
In 2016 in Hamilton County, 2,390 911 dispatches were responses to overdoses, with 3,550 emergency room visits to local hospitals occurring as a result of overdoses and more than 195 heroin-related deaths reported.
Both the 103-page state lawsuit and the 228-page Dayton lawsuit claim manufacturers tricked doctors into prescribing opioids using deceptive marketing.
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Lorain One of Two OH Cities Suing Drug Manufacturers and Distributors
Jun 6, 2017 | Appsforpcdaily.com
By Beatrice Santos
"We are beyond a crisis", she said.
City government officials from around the state are mounting a charge again opioid drug companies, following the state's announcement to sue manufacturers of powerful painkillers. "We have lost so many people". The state's lawsuit, however, only targets five opioid manufacturers. "We need action now". Whaley also said that the city of Lorain will soon file a lawsuit against those same actors.
DeWine is expected to run for governor next year.
"A lot of it has to do with how many pain killers and opiates are on the market that were advertised as not being addictive, as being, "this is going to help your current ailment, it's not addictive" I think many of these drugs were passed on the market under false pretenses", said the mayor.
The Lorain city council voted unanimously Monday night to go ahead with a lawsuit against makers of opioid drugs.
In recent years, OH has led the nation in overdose deaths.
The opiate epidemic claimed 666 lives in Cuyahoga County previous year. "The heroin epidemic is no accident", Whaley said today. "It is time that the companies and distributors who started this epidemic take responsibility for the communities that have been ravaged as a result of the medications they produce". Dayton ranks among the highest number of drug overdoses in the U.S.
Recent numbers show the city is on pace to more than double 2016's total overdose deaths.
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Lorain to sue drug makers over heroin, opioid addictions
Jun 5, 2017 | The Morning Journal
By Richard Payerchin
The city of Lorain hopes to take drug makers to court to recover costs the city spends to deal with the continuing heroin epidemic.
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley on June 5 announced the city would file a lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies, distributors and physicians “responsible for the opioid epidemic.”
In that announcement, Lorain Mayor Chase Ritenauer said Lorain would file litigation as well.
“Cities big and small across Ohio are struggling to serve our citizens with the increasing number of accidental overdoses,” Ritenauer said in a statement with Whaley’s announcement.
“It is time that the companies and distributers who started this epidemic take responsibility for the communities that have been ravaged as a result of the medications they produce,” he said. “It is my sincere hope that mayors across the state will join Mayor Whaley and me as we pursue justice for Ohio communities.”
Later that day, Lorain City Council in its regular meeting of June 5 held a closed-door executive session for about an hour to discuss hiring the law firms Climaco, Wilcox, Peca & Garofolico LPA and Napoli Shkolnik PLLC for the legal fight.
Council then voted 10-0 to enter an agreement with the firm.
Before the vote, Ritenauer repeated his appeal while speaking to Council.
The law firm will “work with Lorain personnel to determine the costs that Lorain has incurred as a result of the over-prescription of opioids,” according to an agreement included with Council’s legislation.
The firm also will “determine the viable causes of action available to Lorain; and determine which if any manufacturers and distributors should be targeted in a lawsuit … for economic losses arising from the manufacture and distribution of opioids,” according to the agreement.
It was unclear exactly how the legal process would go forward.
Lorain Law Director Pat Riley said he expects a lawsuit to be filed in state court in the next two weeks. The city has not determined the exact cost of public safety personnel responding to heroin overdoses and opioid addiction, he said.
“We are working on that,” Riley said.
The city of Lorain could be “part of a large number of cases of the same nature, which may be handled as an aggregate, class or multiple groups for trial preparation and settlement negotiations,” according to an agreement included with Council’s legislation.
The city will not pay for the legal representation unless there is “a monetary recovery acceptable to Lorain,” according to the agreement.
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City of Dayton sues drug makers for role in overdose epidemic
Jun 6, 2017 | Dayton Daily News
By Cornelius Frolik
The city of Dayton is suing more than a dozen pharmaceutical companies, distributors and pain specialists it alleges caused the opioid crisis that has killed thousands of Ohioans, drained public resources and wasted taxpayer dollars.
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley on Monday announced the city is filing suit because she says drug companies and distributors have financially benefited from the state’s worsening opiate epidemic while Ohio’s communities and residents suffered.
“We believe the drug companies made this mess, and it is time they stop passing the buck to Ohio’s taxpayers and started paying to clean it up,” Whaley said. “The drug companies are profiting, and we are paying for it.”
The city’s lawsuit comes less than one week after Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced the state will sue five pharmaceutical companies that marketed addictive prescription pain medication.
Whaley, however, said the state’s lawsuit does not go far enough to hold accountable all of the parties responsible for opiate addiction.
DeWine and Whaley are both running for Ohio governor and have made battling opiate addiction a key pillar of their platforms.
Multiple companies named in the lawsuit reached by this newspaper said they are concerned about improper use of opiate medications and denied wrongdoing or acting irresponsibly.
“We firmly believe the allegations in this lawsuit are both legally and factually unfounded,” Jessica Castles Smith, a spokeswoman with Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. “Janssen has acted appropriately, responsibly and in the best interests of patients regarding our opioid pain medications, which are FDA-approved and carry FDA-mandated warnings about the known risks of the medications on every product label.”
The city is filing the lawsuit in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court.
“This case is about one thing: corporate greed,” according to the lawsuit’s introduction. “Defendants put their desire for profits above the health and well-being of the city of Dayton consumers at the cost of plaintiff.”
The defendants include some of the nation’s largest pharmaceutical companies as well as a few of the most prominent U.S. advocates for using opiates to treat pain.
In the 1960s, more than 80 percent of people who used opioids started with heroin, Whaley said.
Today, she said, nearly 80 percent of opioid users began with prescription painkillers, many of whom then graduated to heroin and Fentanyl to feed their addiction.
“The heroin epidemic is no accident, it did not just happen,” Whaley said. “It started with the drug companies.”
The city’s lawsuit seeks monetary damages for the harmful impact the crisis has had on citizens, taxpayers and city resources, city leaders said.
Opiate addiction comes with a heavy cost to families, Ohio communities, first responders and taxpayers, and the problem is growing, Whaley said.
Dayton officials have talked with other Ohio cities for nearly a year about taking legal action against drug makers, distributors and bad physicians, Whaley said.
DeWine’s lawsuit is a step in the right direction but is limited to just five drug companies, while the city’s suit also targets culpable distributors and doctors, Whaley said.
Dayton officials said the city of Lorain is expected to soon file a lawsuit against drug companies and distributors.
“Cities big and small across Ohio are struggling to serve our citizens with the increasing number of accidental overdoses,” said Lorain Mayor Chase Ritenauer in a statement.
Last week, Montgomery County surpassed the record 349 accidental overdose deaths reported in 2016 — with more than half the year remaining.
Dayton police, fire and EMS personnel so far this year have responded to more than 1,800 calls for service related to suspected drug overdoses, which is on track to double last year’s total, said police Chief Richard Biehl.
Dayton first responders have administered more than 7,600 milligrams of Narcan this year, which is already 50 percent more than they used in 2016, Biehl said.
The epidemic is “taxing public safety resources, and there is no end in sight,” Biehl said.
The city’s lawsuit seeks relief for Dayton’s first responders, who are experiencing burn-out from the mental stress and physical demands of responding to so many drug overdoses and drug-related incidents, said Dayton fire Lt. Sarah Marshall.
Drug addicts and overdose patients can be violent. First responders also are at risk of making contact with Fentanyl, which can be absorbed through the skin, and needles belonging to people with HIV and other contractable diseases, officials said.
Dayton has hired Cleveland law firm Climaco, Wilcox, Peca & Garofoli Co. to assist with the lawsuit, said Barbara Doseck, Dayton’s law director.
Doseck said the city is not paying the firm, which instead has a retainer agreement that means it will be get a certain share of any award or settlement the city wins.
“That’s standard with this type of litigation,” she said.
The companies and parties named as defendants in the lawsuit include Purdue Pharma, Teva Pharmaceuticals Inc., Cephalon Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc., Allergan, Endo Health Solutions, McKesson Corp., Cardinal Health Inc., AmerisourceBergen Corp., Russell Portenoy, Perry Fine, Scott Fishman and Lynn Webster.
Portenoy, a pain specialist, was a vocal and nationally-known advocate for using opioid medications.
Fine and Fishman are physicians and served on the board of the American Pain Foundation. Webster had served as the president of the American Academy of Pain Medication.
Endo, a Pennsylvania company, when asked about the state’s law suit last week, told this news organization its policy is not to comment on ongoing or current litigation.
In 2007, Purdue accepted responsibility for actions taken prior to 2002 by some of its employees, when the company settled with the federal government and multiple states, including Ohio, regarding the addictive qualities of OxyContin, the company said in a statement.
“In the years since then, we have dedicated ourselves to collaborating with policymakers, public health officials and law enforcement to address the opioid crisis, which includes developing abuse-deterrent technology, advocating for the use of prescription drug monitoring programs and supporting access to Naloxone,” the company said. “We take FDA regulations seriously, and we are in full compliance.”
Lori Erion, founding director of the local group Families of Addicts, said she fears the lawsuits could have negative unintended consequences.
“My fear is it will drive up the cost of needed pharmaceuticals,” she said.
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Lorain city council votes to sue opioid manufacturers
Jun 5, 2017 | WJW-FOX (Cleveland, OH)
By Kevin Freeman
The battle against the opioid epidemic could be moving from the streets to the court-house. The mayor of Lorain is one of two Ohio mayors who wants to sue drug manufacturers.
The Lorain city council voted unanimously Monday night to go ahead with a lawsuit against makers of opioid drugs. Earlier in the day, the mayor of Dayton had announced that his city had actually filed suit.
"We can't go to church, we can't go to a restaurant, you can't go to a family event without seeing somebody who has been impacted by the heroin epidemic," said Lorain Mayor Chase Ritenauer as he addressed council members.
Ritenauer urged members of city council to approve filing a lawsuit against a list of opioid manufacturers and distributors. He blames them, in part for the opioid overdose epidemic ravaging his city, the state of the Ohio and the entire country.
"A lot of it has to do with how many pain killers and opiates are on the market that were advertised as not being addictive, as being, 'this is going to help your current ailment, it's not addictive' I think many of these drugs were passed on the market under false pretenses," said the mayor.
In recent years, Ohio has led the nation in overdose deaths. Last year, there were about 140 overdose deaths in Lorain County...double the number from the year before.
"There is a connection, the more opiates on the market, the heroin epidemic, the number of deaths every year, it is increasing, in some cases ten fold...the city of Lorain, every year in the last three years or four years, we continue to see overdose deaths," said Ritenauer.
Mayor Ritenauer says the costs to the city is significant both in the number of lives lost and money spent.
"The amount of money we spend on narcotics investigations, drug busts, the time to prosecute those who are dealing drugs...Narcan, which Lorain County is the first county who did a pilot program of Narcan," he said.
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Courtroom is latest front in opioid battle, Lorain plans to sue makers, distributors of painkillers
Jun 6, 2017 | WEWS-ABC (Cleveland, OH)
By Derick Waller
Susan Kannel’s heroin addiction didn’t start with a cliche visit to a back-alley drug dealer. Instead, she said it began in her Cleveland home, where she injured her back taking her son’s bike down a flight of stairs.
The 41-year-old mother of four said she went to see a doctor, who prescribed Vicodin for her pain. Before long she found herself telling doctors made up stories, so she’d get prescribed stronger medication. Then, after a trip to a drug treatment center, the doctors cut her off.
"I couldn’t get pain pills,” she said, “So I started buying them on the street and then when I couldn’t buy them on the street, I escalated to heroin.”
Kannel’s story is all too familiar. A 2014 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that 75 percent of Americans who are addicted to opioids, including heroin, started with legal prescription drugs. Ohio also leads the nation in overdose deaths.
It's why Ohio state and local officials are now filing separate lawsuits against drug makers and their distributors. Attorney General Mike DeWine filed a complaint against five of some of the nation’s largest makers of painkillers in Ross County Common Pleas Court.
Now, the cities of Dayton and Lorain said they are filing their own suits against those same manufacturers and their distributors. Lorain passed an emergency ordinance Monday night to hire the firm Climaco, Wilcox, Peca and Garofoli Co. LPA. It passed unanimously.
“They’ve turned a blind eye to the ill effects of opiates, of pain killers,” Lorain Mayor Chase Ritenauer said. “There is a connection there and we want that to bear that out in court.”
Ritenaur said Lorain needs to be reimbursed for the cost of dealing with the crisis. State and local governments are spending money on Naloxone, or Narcan, the inhalant that can revive people from opiate overdoses. They’re also spending money on drug treatment centers, like Cleveland’s Women’s Recovery Center.
"Our client base now is 60 percent opioid addicted,” Executive Director Mary Jane Chichester said. "That’s up almost four times what it had been four years ago.”
Chichester said it was the right move to sue drug makers.
"They have through the years intentionally said that there was no evidence that these medications were addictive,” Chichester added.
“Somebody somewhere along the way is making a lot of money and don’t even care that I’ma addicted,” Kannel said. "They don’t care that I’m sitting in a treatment center struggling with sobriety. I really truly believe that. They don’t care.”
News 5 reached out to every party named in both the suit filed by the state as well as the suits planned in Dayton and Lorain.
They include drug makers Purdue Pharma, Teva Pharmaceuticals, Johnson & Johnson, Endo Pharmaceuticals and Allergan.
The suits planned in Lorain and Dayton also name the distributors McKesson Corporation, Cardinal Health Inc, AmerisourceBergen Corporation along with individual doctors Russell Portenoy, Perry Fine, Scott Fishman and Lynn Webster.
Lynn Webster, who is the President of the American Academy of Pain Medicine, once called the idea that overprescribing of opioids has lead to the current crisis, “a myth.” When reached Monday, he said "I don't understand how any reasonable person could think I contributed to our national opioid crisis. The plaintiff's attorneys are misinformed."
Here’s what else each party that responded via email Monday told News 5.
CARDINAL HEALTH:
"The people of Cardinal Health care deeply about the devastation opioid abuse has caused American families and communities and are committed to helping solve this complex national public health crisis. We are industry leaders in implementing state-of-the-art controls to combat the diversion of pain medications from legitimate uses, and have funded community education and prevention programs for a decade. We operate as part of a multi-faceted and highly regulated healthcare system – we do not promote, prescribe or dispense prescription medications to members of the public – and believe everyone in that chain, including us, must do their part, which is ultimately why we believe these copycat lawsuits filed against us are misguided, and will do nothing to stem the crisis. We will defend ourselves vigorously in court and at the same time continue to work alongside regulators, manufacturers, doctors, pharmacists and patients to fight opioid abuse and addiction."AMERISOURCEBERGEN:
"AmerisourceBergen is a logistics company who is responsible for getting Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved drugs from pharmaceutical companies who manufacturer them to Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) registered pharmacies who dispense them based on prescriptions written by licensed health care providers. We do not have access to patient information, have no ability to encourage prescribing or dispensing of pain medicines and are not qualified to interfere with clinical decisions between patients and their physicians. In addition to reporting and stopping orders determined to be suspicious, we also provide daily reports about the quantity, type and receiving pharmacy of every single order of controlled substances we distribute to regulatory and enforcement professionals.We intend to vigorously defend ourselves in this litigation while continuing to work collaboratively to combat drug diversion."
JANSSEN/JOHNSON & JOHNSON:
"We firmly believe the allegations in this lawsuit are both legally and factually unfounded. Janssen has acted appropriately, responsibly and in the best interests of patients regarding our opioid pain medications, which are FDA-approved and carry FDA-mandated warnings about the known risks of the medications on every product label.
At Janssen, we put the needs and well-being of the patients, caregivers and families we serve first. More than 100 million American adults suffer from chronic pain, a significant public health problem that places a tremendous emotional and financial burden on patients and their families. Our opioid pain medications give doctors and patients important choices to help manage the debilitating effects of chronic pain."ALLERGAN:
"Allergan has a history of supporting -- and continues to support -- the safe, responsible use of prescription medications. This includes opioid medications, which when sold, prescribed and used responsibly, play an appropriate role in pain relief for millions of Americans."TEVA:
"For many years, Teva has been committed to the appropriate promotion and use of opioids. We have programs in place that educate prescribers, pharmacists, and patients on the responsible and safe use of these products. We are committed to working with the healthcare community, regulators and public officials to collaboratively find solutions.” -
Dayton to file suit against pharmaceutical companies, distributors in opioid crisis
Jun 5, 2017 | WGRT-FOX
By Christian Hauser
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley says the drug companies, their distributors and some physicians are responsible for the opioid crisis so the city has filed a lawsuit against them.
Whaley says nearly four out of every five opioid users started with a prescription painkiller.
"We believe the drug companies made this mess and it is time they stopped passing the buck to Ohio's taxpayers and started paying to clean it up," Whaley said.
Whaley says Dayton police, fire and EMS crews have responded to more than 1,800 calls for suspected overdoses so far this year. The city is on track to more than double overdose-related responses this year.
First responders have given over 7,600 mgs of Narcan in the field this year, saving thousands of lives.
Dayton has already surpassed the amount of Narcan used in all of 2016 by over 50 percent in only five months.
Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine has already filed a lawsuit against five drug companies.
"(DeWine) did not include distributors, which is critical and he did not include all the links in the chain. Our suit does that and quite frankly it makes sure the people on the ground, the people that are responding would receive help in the suit, which we don't know if that would be the case in the attorney general's suit," Whaley said.
But Whaley says something has to be done on a local level.
"As our state's broken partnership with communities continues, we are again taking matters into our own hands to get this done right and to make the drug companies and distributors who created this mess to clean it up," Whaley said.
Dayton joins several of other cities and states to sue the pharmaceutical companies.
But the courts are siding with the drug companies.
"They can say, 'Look, we went through the FDA process. You told us exactly what we needed to do. We did it. You approved our drug. Here it is, it's people that are misusing it. (It's) not us deceiving people,'" Mark Clauson, a history & law professor at Cedarville University said. "Therefore we can't hold the pharmacy company or the doctors liable for what was misused. Nobody has succeeded, virtually no one has succeeded so far.”
Mayor Whaley, a Democrat, is running for governor, one of her expected opponents is Republican Mike DeWine.
Clauson thinks there is more than just trying to get the drug companies to help battle the drug epidemic behind the decision.
"I'm not suggesting that she does not think something would come of it, get some money from deep pockets, use the money for treatments it might be possible but on the other hand I can't help thinking that somewhere back there is the whole issue of running for office down the road," Clauson said.
Dayton is seeking recovery of the cost to the community, including increases in law enforcement, educational and community programs, and drug support programs.
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UPDATE- Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley announced this morning that the city will file suit against pharmacuetical companies and drug distributors she says are responsible for the opioid crisis.
"We are beyond a crisis," Mayor Whaley said this morning as she stood next to other city leaders, "we have lost so many people, we are in a state of emergency, we need action now." Whaley said Dayton has been facing the heroin epidemic head-on by increasing police presence and upping ambulance runs. The mayor said it's time for the price tag of the crisis to be passed on to Ohio taxpayers. So far this year, Whaley said the city has used more Narcan than it did in 2016. In Montgomery County this year there have been 348 accidental overdoses.
Whaley said the state is not giving enough help and the lawsuit recently announced by Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine does not go far enough. "We are again taking matters into our own hands to get this done right," Whaley said. Dayton Police Chief Richard Biehl spoke briefly Monday morning saying the crisis is taxing the public safety resources and "there is no end in sight." Whaley said the city of Lorain will also be filing a lawsuit. The city is hoping the lawsuit being filed will recover the costs of increasing law enforcement, educational and community programs and drug support programs.
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MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Ohio (WKEF/WRGT) - Opioid overdoses in Montgomery County are on pace to double the record number set in 2016, and the year is only half over.
The city of Dayton is announcing new efforts to fight the heroin crisis this morning. It has been a drain on resources but soon, the city will be getting some held with state and federal funding. Last week, members of the Community Overdose Action Team (COAT) gathered to talk about new ways to fight back against the opioid crisis. One of the ideas is to create a new crisis care center to help lift the burden off of emergency rooms and the jail.
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley recently said she believes drug companies should be paying for the opioid crisis, which was created by their products, "the drug companies need to be held accountable," Whaley said, "They are the ones that started this mess and it shouldn’t be the taxpayers footing the bill which is what we’re seeing with first responders and the cost to our communities."
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Dayton files lawsuit against drug companies
Jun 6, 2017 | WDTN-TV (Dayton, OH)
By Paul Rodzinka
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley announced the city filed its own lawsuit against drug companies over the opioid crisis.
Mayor Whaley says they lawsuit comes after nearly a year of discussions with other cities about this action.
Whaley, along with City Commissions and the Chiefs of Dayton Police and Fire, said the opioid epidemic began with drug companies and said that nearly 80 percent of opioid users say their first experience with opioids was a prescription pain reliever.
“It is caused so much death, suffering and strain on our families and our communities,” Whaley said. “Unless we take serious action there’s no telling the destruction to come.”
Whaley said by the end of July Dayton will have surpassed the 2016 number of emergency responses, narcan use and deaths in Dayton and Montgomery County.
Whaley continued, “Today, the City of Dayton is suing the pharmaceutical companies and drug distributors responsible for the heroin epidemic.”“We are beyond a crisis,” said Mayor Whaley. “We need action now.”
The companies listed in the lawsuit are:
PURDUE PHARMA L.P.; PURDUE PHARMA INC.; THE PURDUE FREDERICK COMPANY, INC.; TEVA PHARMACEUTICALS USA, INC.; CEPHALON, INC.; JOHNSON & JOHNSON; JANSSEN PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.; ORTHO-MCNEIL-JANSSEN PHARMACEUTICALS, INC. N/K/A JANSSEN PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.; JANSSEN PHARMACEUTICA, INC. N/K/A JANSSEN PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.; ENDO PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.; ALLERGAN PLC F/K/A ACTAVIS PLC; ACTAVIS, INC. F/K/A WATSON PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.; WATSON LABORATORIES, INC.; ACTAVIS LLC; ACTAVIS PHARMA, INC. F/K/A WATSON PHARMA, INC., ENDO HEALTH SOLUTIONS INC.; MCKESSON CORPORATION; CARDINAL HEALTH, INC.; AMERISOURCEBERGEN CORPORATION; RUSSELL PORTENOY; PERRY FINE; SCOTT FISHMAN; and LYNN WEBSTER
The announcement comes less than a week after Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced his office filed a lawsuit against five drug manufacturing companies over the spread of opioid addiction.
Five pharmaceutical companies are named in the lawsuit including the makers of OxyContin and Percocet.
DeWine said on May 31 the companies named used “false and misleading statements” to prescribers – downplaying the risks of prescription opioids and inflating the benefits.
Mayor Whaley agreed with the lawsuit telling 2 NEWS, “I’m absolutely in favor of suing the drug companies and holding them accountable, but we need action fast and now. Every day someone is dying from this addiction,” Whaley said.
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Dayton, Lorain To Sue Drug Companies For Opioid Epidemic Costs
Jun 6, 2017 | 91.3 WYSO
By Jess Mador
Less than a week after Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced the state is suing five pharmaceutical companies for their role in the opioid epidemic, the city of Dayton is bringing its own suit. Mayor Nan Whaley Monday announced the lawsuit, which she says is needed to recover costs associated with police, fire, EMS and addiction treatment services.
Recent numbers show the city is on pace to more than double 2016’s total overdose deaths. Whaley says the lawsuit is intended to hold opioid-makers and distributors accountable for rising emergency response expenses.
“When you’re dealing [with the epidemic], and our police and fire and first responders are dealing day in and day out, it’s not fair that Dayton taxpayers have to pay for the crisis. And we think the people that started it – and it’s an epidemic, I view it as almost a natural disaster in our community – they should pay for that, and it shouldn’t be on the burden of Dayton taxpayers.”
Whaley has made the opioid epidemic a key issue in her campaign for governor.
Officials with the city of Lorain have also announced a separate lawsuit against opioid manufacturers and distributors.
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Dayton and Lorain Announce They're Suing Two Dozen Painkiller Manufacturers and Distributors
Jun 5, 2017 | 89.7 WKSU
By Andy Chow
City officials around the state are mounting a charge again opioid drug companies, following the state’s announcement to sue manufacturers of powerful painkillers.
A gubernatorial candidate is helping lead the charge.
The cities of Dayton and Lorain are suing nearly two dozen drug manufacturers and distributors.
Democratic Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley says the drug companies misled doctors in thinking that the pills were not addictive.
A similar argument in the lawsuit Republican Attorney General Mike DeWine filed last week. But DeWine went after just the manufacturers, not the distributors. Whaley says the responsibility for the crisis is a broad one.
“We’ve always had the plan to hold everyone accountable and definitely distributors and manufacturers are culpable in it,” she said.
DeWine is expected to run for governor next year. Whaley mentioned action against drug companies in launching her campaignfor the office last month.
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