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Opioid 6/16 Media Report
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States investigate opioid manufacturers
Jun 16, 2017 | CNN
By Nadia Kounang
A broad coalition of state attorneys general from across the country have partnered together on a bipartisan committee to probe the marketing and sales practices of opioid manufacturers. -
State attorneys general target drugmakers’ role in worsening opioid crisis
Jun 15, 2017 | Vice News
By Carter Sherman
Attorneys general from at least 20 states are opening a joint investigation into whether opioid manufacturers broke the law while marketing and selling their wares, -
State attorneys general announce nationwide bipartisan probe into opioid marketing & production
Jun 16, 2017 | RT
The majority of state attorneys general have joined together to investigate the growing opioid epidemic and what part drug manufacturers played in creating and prolonging the crisis. -
Amid opioid epidemic, Texas joins multistate investigation into drugmakers' role
Jun 15, 2017 | Texas Tribune
By Jim Malewitz
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has joined a group of state attorneys general who are investigating the marketing and sales of prescription painkillers, as they work to determine whether drugmakers have broken any laws amid a nationwide epidemic of opioid addiction. -
Bipartisan Attorneys General Group Opens Probe of Opioid Makers
Jun 15, 2017 | Courthouse News Service
By Christine Stuart
At least 16 states teamed up Thursday to investigate whether pharmaceutical manufacturers have engaged in unlawful practices in the marketing and sale of prescription opioids. -
Attorney General Laxalt announces ongoing investigation against opioid epidemic
Jun 15, 2017 | KRNV-NBC (Carson City, NV)
By Diane Thao
Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt is teaming up with other AGs to combat the opioid crisis. -
PA Attorney General investigating role of drug companies in opioid crisis
Jun 15, 2017 | WPMT-FOX (Harrisburg, PA)
By Mark Roper
The latest fight against the opioid epidemic in Pennsylvania comes from a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general nationwide. -
Iowa part of probe into opioid pharmaceutical marketing and sales
Jun 15, 2017 | The Des Moines Register
By Molly Longman
State Attorney General Tom Miller announced Thursday that his office is part of an ongoing multi-state investigation into whether certain opioid manufacturers have unlawfully marketed and sold the powerful painkillers, according to an Iowa Department of Justice release. -
Opioid bill proposed by local state rep gets boost from attorney general
Jun 15, 2017 | WJAC-NBC (Harrisburg, PA)
By Matthew Stevens
A bill proposed by a local state representative to fight the opioid crisis gained traction following an announcement made by the attorney general Thursday. -
AG Denn investigating whether drug manufacturers created opioid crisis
Jun 15, 2017 | The News Journal
By Brittany Horn
The Delaware Attorney General's office, as well as similar state offices across America, have been investigating whether opioid manufacturers "engaged in unlawful or deceptive practices" when marketing and selling these drugs. -
Slatery investigating opioid crisis
Jun 15, 2017 | Nashville Post
By Cari Wade Gervin
Two days after a lawsuit was filed in Sullivan County against the manufacturers of OxyContin, Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery has announced he is leading a coalition of attorneys general from across the country in comprehensive investigations into the roots of the opioid epidemic. -
Shapiro: AGs probing role of Big Pharma in opioid crisis
Jun 16, 2017 | The Daily Intern
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced Thursday that his office is leading a national investigation into the role played by pharmaceutical companies in “creating and prolonging” the opioid crisis that is now claiming 13 lives a day in the state. -
Attorney General Shapiro: Pennsylvania is part of multi-state opioids investigation
Jun 15, 2017 | Penn Live
By Charles Thompson
Attorney General Josh Shapiro said Thursday he is part of a bipartisan group of Attorneys General nationwide investigating drug manufacturers' roles in "creating or prolonging" America's opioid abuse crisis. -
Brad Schimel, other attorneys general investigating opioid manufacturers
Jun 15, 2017 | The Capital Times
By Jessie Opoien
Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel said Thursday he is involved in an ongoing investigation into whether pharmaceutical companies broke the law in the marketing and sale of opioid medications. -
States join forces to probe opioid drug companies
Jun 16, 2017 | Consumer Affairs
By Mark Huffman
A number of state attorneys general have announced a joint investigation to determine whether pharmaceutical companies selling opioid drugs have violated laws. -
Arizona Opioid maker target of state AG probe
Jun 15, 2017 | Arizona Capitol Times
By Howard Fischer
Attorney General Mark Brnovich is looking into the marketing practices of an Arizona firm that manufactures opioids. -
Pa. AG says his office is investigating opioid manufacturers
Jun 15, 2017 | Newsworks
By Ben Allen
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro said he's investigating opioid manufacturers, along with attorneys general in at least 25 other states. -
State AGs Open Probe Into Opioid Drugmakers
Jun 15, 2017 | Law360
By Rachel Graf
Attorneys general throughout the U.S. have launched a joint investigation into how drugmakers might have contributed to the country’s opioid epidemic, the latest indication that pharmaceutical companies are being increasingly scrutinized as the crisis worsens. -
Tennessee counties slap Big Pharma with lawsuit over opioid epidemic costs
Jun 15, 2017 | Knoxville News Sentinel
By Jamie Satterfield
Three Tennessee judicial districts on Tuesday announced a legal effort to make the drugmakers who supplied the opiates that addicted millions — Big Pharma — pay for the epidemic their drugs created. -
Trump's opioid commission is meeting for the first time
Jun 16, 2017 | STAT News (Morning Rounds)
By Megan Thielking
Relevant portions included: President Trump’s opioid commission meets for the first time this morning, and they have a full agenda.
Attorney General Coverage
Other Litigation Coverage
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States investigate opioid manufacturers
Jun 16, 2017 | CNN
By Nadia Kounang
A broad coalition of state attorneys general from across the country have partnered together on a bipartisan committee to probe the marketing and sales practices of opioid manufacturers.
The aim is to investigate what role manufacturers may have played in contributing to the current opioid epidemic.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 33,000 lives were lost to opioid overdose in 2015, nearly half of those deaths involving a prescription opioid. In fact, three out of four new heroin users start with legal narcotics, such as oxycodone or hydrocodone. These legal painkillers are chemically similar or derived from the poppy plant, like heroin.
Opioid overdoses have quadrupled in the United States since 1999. Drug overdoses, most of them from opioids, are the leading cause of accidental death, killing more people than cars or guns.
The move by these chief law enforcement officers comes more than two weeks after Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine filed a lawsuit against five drug companies accusing them of misleading physicians about the risks of opioid medications. Asked if the state were participating in some way with this new coalition, CNN was told "no comment."
A majority of attorneys general cited
Announcements from some of the coalition members did not detail specific actions their committee would take or specify which companies they would be taking action against. However, press statements said they would use subpoenas to ascertain documents and testimony. It is unclear when those actions will begin.
While the exact number of states participating in the investigation is unclear, a statement from Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt's office said the coalition consists "of a majority of attorneys general from across the country."
"State attorneys general almost never announce the existence of investigations before they are completed, but the opioid crisis is a uniquely dire situation," said Attorney General Karl Racine of the District of Columbia.
"Deaths from opioid overdoses are skyrocketing across our country, and the District is no stranger to that trend. We are looking into what role, if any, marketing and related practices might have played in the increasing prescription and use of these powerful and addictive drugs."
Allegations of profits over people
The exact number of states participating in the investigation is not clear and that may be due in part because of the early nature of the investigation. Also, because each state has its own set of laws, each may ultimately choose to file complaints under different sets of statutes.
"The multistate investigation will help us determine the appropriate course of action we can take as attorneys general to address the opioid epidemic," Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said.
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan said, "I want to know whether drug companies, seeking higher profits, have recklessly and unlawfully pushed addictive opioids."
Madigan added, "We must hold drug companies accountable for their role in the epidemic levels of opioid overdoses and deaths in Illinois and around the country."
In addition to Ohio, municipalities such as the cities of Everett, Washington, and Chicago, along with counties in West Virginia and Tennessee, and the Cherokee Nation have all filed litigation against manufacturers alleging the use of deceptive marketing practices to push opioid painkillers.
Investigations are also occurring on Capitol Hill. In late March, Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri began an inquiry into the marketing practices of some of the country's most profitable opioid manufacturers.
CNN reached out to each state for additional comment beyond what was announced and didn't receive any additional information.
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State attorneys general target drugmakers’ role in worsening opioid crisis
Jun 15, 2017 | Vice News
By Carter Sherman
Attorneys general from at least 20 states are opening a joint investigation into whether opioid manufacturers broke the law while marketing and selling their wares,
“I want to know whether drug companies, seeking higher profits, have recklessly and unlawfully pushed addictive opioids,” Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan said in a statement. “We must hold drug companies accountable for their role in the epidemic levels of opioid overdoses and deaths in Illinois and around the country.”
“State attorneys general almost never announce the existence of investigations before they are completed, but the opioid crisis is a uniquely dire situation,” added Karl Racine, Washington D.C.’s attorney general, in statementof his own. D.C. is also participating in the investigation.
The coalition of attorneys general did not specify which companies they were examining.
If the attorneys general do end up filing a lawsuit, they’d join a growing wave of states, counties, and cities that are trying to hold opioid manufacturers and distributors responsible for allegedly spreading the opioid epidemic by downplaying the drugs’ risks. Within the last few weeks alone, Ohio’s attorney general, three Tennessee district attorneys, a New York county, and the city of Dayton, Ohio have all filed lawsuits accusing companies of worsening the epidemic. The state of Mississippi, counties in West Virginia and California, and the cities of Chicago and Everett, Washington have also all launched similar lawsuits. In April, the Cherokee Nation also sued six of the country’s top opioid manufacturers and distributors — the first such lawsuit to be filed in tribal court.
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State attorneys general announce nationwide bipartisan probe into opioid marketing & production
Jun 16, 2017 | RT
The majority of state attorneys general have joined together to investigate the growing opioid epidemic and what part drug manufacturers played in creating and prolonging the crisis.
On Thursday, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey announced that her office has been working with the bipartisan coalition to evaluate “whether manufacturers used illegal practices in the marketing and sale of opioids and worsened this deadly crisis,” according to a statement.
Healey’s office, which is on the executive committee leading the investigation, said the attorneys general are using their investigative authority to issue subpoenas for documents and testimony. However, they have not identified any specific targets of the ongoing investigation.
“State attorneys general almost never announce the existence of investigations before they are completed, but the opioid crisis is a uniquely dire situation,” Washington DC Attorney General Karl Racine said in a statement.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 33,000 people died of opioid-related overdoses in the US in 2015, quadruple the rate in 1999. Opioids are the leading cause of overdose deaths in the US, with 91 Americans dying every day.
A study by the CDC found that Americans consume opioids “at a greater rate than any other nation,” twice as much per capita as the second-ranking nation, Canada.
The investigation was announced two weeks after Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine filed a lawsuit against leading prescription opioid manufacturers, accusing them of engaging in a “deceptive marketing campaign” to persuade doctors and patients that opioids are not addictive.
Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen released a statement, saying that it would be “irresponsible to predict at this stage whether our efforts will lead to legal action or relief,” but added that his office will “pursue this investigation fully.”
Last Thursday, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requested Endo Pharmaceuticals remove its painkiller Opana ER from the market. The drug’s active ingredient, oxymorphone, is an opioid similar to morphine, but 10 times more potent. The agency said it was the first time it has taken steps to stop the sale of an opioid medication over concerns of public abuse.
While I certainly do not want to assume where this investigation may lead, I think it is fair to say that it wouldn't be the first time [that] pharmaceutical companies used deceptive sales and marketing of certain drugs for tremendous financial benefit," Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Kilmartin said in a statement.
“We owe it to the victims and their families to examine every aspect of this epidemic – from manufacturing of legal opioids to illegal diversion – if we are going to… truly get at the heart of the crisis," Kilmartin added.
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Amid opioid epidemic, Texas joins multistate investigation into drugmakers' role
Jun 15, 2017 | Texas Tribune
By Jim Malewitz
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has joined a group of state attorneys general who are investigating the marketing and sales of prescription painkillers, as they work to determine whether drugmakers have broken any laws amid a nationwide epidemic of opioid addiction.
Paxton and his counterparts are tapping a variety of legal tools — including issuing subpoenas for documents and testimony — to pull back the curtain on the role of opioid manufacturers in creating or prolonging the epidemic, the Republican announced Thursday.
Opioids are a family of drugs including prescription painkillers like hydrocodone, as well as illicit drugs like heroin.
Prescription and illegal opioids account for more than 60 percent of overdose deaths in the United States, a toll that has quadrupled over the past two decades, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
Texas saw 1,186 opioid-related deaths in 2015, while the nation as a whole had 33,000 such deaths that year. Researchers have flagged opioids as a factor in Texas’ staggering rise in women’s deaths during and shortly after pregnancy.
“This is a public safety and public health issue. Opioid painkiller abuse and related overdoses are devastating families here in Texas and throughout the country,” Paxton said in a statement. “The multistate investigation will help us determine the appropriate course of action we can take as attorneys general to address the opioid epidemic.”
A spokeswoman for Paxton declined to share more details about the investigation, such as how many attorneys general are involved or whether the coalition is targeting specific companies.
Representatives with the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, based in Washington, D.C., did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The probe includes a majority of U.S. states, Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro, a Democrat said in a statement Thursday. It comes three weeks after Ohio filed a lawsuit against five major opioid manufacturers, accusing them of misrepresenting the risks and benefits of the drugs in marketing campaigns. Mississippi filed a similar lawsuit — still pending — in late 2015.
In teaming up, the states appear to be following the same playbook they used during the 1990s to sue tobacco companies for their role in fueling a costly health crisis — an effort that resulted in a settlement yielding more than $15 billion for Texas alone.
“I expect a national trend, a significant wave of lawsuits against the companies and organizations connected with the spread of these powerful prescription drugs,” Kent Sullivan, a former Texas First Assistant Attorney General under Greg Abbott, said in an email. “States will be very tempted by the significant potential damages that may be awarded in court to try to recoup some of the costs of treatment.”
While companies may find ways to defend themselves, states appear to have the upper hand under Medicaid fraud and consumer protection statutes, said Sullivan, now with the law firm Jackson Walker. “You have a huge hammer over these companies’ heads.”
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Bipartisan Attorneys General Group Opens Probe of Opioid Makers
Jun 15, 2017 | Courthouse News Service
By Christine Stuart
At least 16 states teamed up Thursday to investigate whether pharmaceutical manufacturers have engaged in unlawful practices in the marketing and sale of prescription opioids.
Opioids were involved in 33,091 deaths nationwide in 2015, with the number of opioid overdoses quadrupling since 1999, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
With the death toll having rocked every state in the nation, the attorneys general from Alabama, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Nevada, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Vermont, and Wisconsin released similarly worded announcements Thursday about their plans to take action.
Though none of the states identified any targets of their investigations by name, they said they were investigating what role, if any, opioid manufacturers may have played in exacerbating or prolonging the nation’s opioid epidemic.
“Three out of four heroin users started by abusing prescription opioids, and our ongoing investigation is going straight into the boardrooms of pharmaceutical companies,” Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro said.
Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel called the crisis “a result of failings across the entire health care system.”
The press releases come more than two weeks after Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine filed a lawsuit against numerous manufacturers of prescription pain medicines.
Purdue Pharma, Endo Health Solutions, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Janssen Pharmaceuticals and Allergan are all named as defendants to that action.
The suit says the manufacturers used sales representatives and advertising to downplay the risks associated with opiates, which has led to a rapid increase in prescription drug and heroin addiction across Ohio.
In September 2016, 43 attorneys general filed an antitrust lawsuit against the makers of Suboxone, a prescription drug used to treat opioid addiction, over allegations that the companies engaged in a scheme to block generic competitors, forcing people to pay artificially high prices at a time when the companies reaped more than $3 billion in profits.
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Attorney General Laxalt announces ongoing investigation against opioid epidemic
Jun 15, 2017 | KRNV-NBC (Carson City, NV)
By Diane Thao
Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt is teaming up with other AGs to combat the opioid crisis.
The Office of the Nevada Attorney General and a bipartisan coalition of a majority of attorneys general will evaluate whether manufacturers have engaged in unlawful practices in the marketing and sale of opioids.
The coalition is using "its investigative tools, including subpoenas for documents and testimony to determine the appropriate course of action to address the opioid epidemic," according to a press release.
According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency, Nevada is ranked sixth in the nation for the number of milligrams of opioids distributed per adult in 2016.
Laxalt chaired Senate Bill 59, which aims to combat prescription drug-related overdoses or deaths and reports of stolen prescription drugs to the Prescription Monitoring Program.
"So we have some ideas if it's a doctor that is attached to ten straight overdoses or some other information that we can gather to try and protect our citizens," said Laxalt.
Laxalt entered a $5.3 million settlement with Volkswagen from the multi-state emission lawsuit last year. The funds will go toward opioid awareness campaigns.
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PA Attorney General investigating role of drug companies in opioid crisis
Jun 15, 2017 | WPMT-FOX (Harrisburg, PA)
By Mark Roper
The latest fight against the opioid epidemic in Pennsylvania comes from a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general nationwide.
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro announces he’s working with the group on an investigation of drug companies.
The coalition wants to find out if opioid manufacturers did anything illegal in selling the highly addictive prescription pain killer.
Shapiro blamed opioids as the leading cause of drug overdose deaths in Pennsylvania.
“No matter how big or powerful they are, they will be held accountable for their time in thus tragedy spreading across the commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” Shapiro said.
The attorney general would not comment on whether the results of the investigation might involve a lawsuit.
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Iowa part of probe into opioid pharmaceutical marketing and sales
Jun 15, 2017 | The Des Moines Register
By Molly Longman
State Attorney General Tom Miller announced Thursday that his office is part of an ongoing multi-state investigation into whether certain opioid manufacturers have unlawfully marketed and sold the powerful painkillers, according to an Iowa Department of Justice release.
A bipartisan group of state attorneys general is investigating the role that prescription opioid manufacturers may have played in creating and prolonging the nation's opioid abuse epidemic, the release states.
The investigation has been underway for over a year, and the state attorney general's office became involved about a year ago, according to the office's communications director Geoff Greenwood.
The probe — which the release say includes the majority of states — begins after Ohio filed a lawsuit against five major opioid manufacturers. The lawsuit alleges that some manufacturers misrepresented the risks and benefits of the drugs in marketing campaigns. Mississippi filed a similar lawsuit in late 2015 which is still pending.
Opiods are narcotics doctors often prescribe when ailments such as head or muscle pain are so severe they don't respond to other painkillers. Heroin is associated with non-medical use of prescription opioid pain relievers.
Nationwide, opioids — both prescription and illicit — are the main driver of drug overdose deaths. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest report, opioids were involved in 33,091 deaths across the U.S. in 2015. Opioid overdoses have quadrupled since 1999.
The probe is using its civil law enforcement authority, including investigative demands for documents and testimony, to determine the appropriate course of action, according to the release.
“We’re asking tough questions and we’re seeking solid evidence to help us understand how pharmaceutical companies have mass-marketed and sold these highly addictive pain medications, including claims they’ve made about their products,” Miller said. “These are prescription drugs that we know have helped fuel epidemic levels of addiction to opioids and heroin.”
Over the last decade in Iowa, according to the latest Iowa Department of Public Health report on heroin and opioids, there have been “significant increases” in the number of Iowans identifying heroin and opioids as their drug of choice when they began seeking treatment, while there have been jumps in the number of overdose deaths.
Between 2005 to 2015, opioid painkiller-related treatment admission rose 279 percent, while heroin-related admissions increased by 386 percent, the report states.
The number of overdose deaths increased in the same time frame, with opioid painkiller-related overdose deaths climbing 76 percent and heroin-related overdose fatalities surging by 650 percent, the report states.
In January, two Democratic lawmakers Chuck Isenhart of Dubuque and Timi Brown-Powers of Waterloo said they wanted the legislature to take serious measures to combat the problem. In March, some Iowa pharmacies began selling a heroin antidote without a prescription after legislators passed a law easing restrictions on the antidote medication in 2016.
Earlier this year, the Ames Police Department warned local parents about a potentially deadly synthetic opioid called "pink," which had been involved in a handful of cases since last June. Police said the drug was a high risk for high schoolers and college students.
The University of Iowa's Injury Prevention Research Center issued a March report that found that prescription opioid use has reached "unprecedented" levels, while heroin use is becoming an ever-growing public health problem.
The UI report found that rates of prescription drug deaths since 1999 have quadrupled in Iowa, making it only one of four states with such a dramatic increase.
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Opioid bill proposed by local state rep gets boost from attorney general
Jun 15, 2017 | WJAC-NBC (Harrisburg, PA)
By Matthew Stevens
A bill proposed by a local state representative to fight the opioid crisis gained traction following an announcement made by the attorney general Thursday.
Rep. Frank Burns proposed a bill earlier in June that would require those who overdose in public to seek treatment within 30 days.
In that proposal, Burns said money to fund treatment should come from lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies.
Thursday, Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced that he is part of a coalition of attorney generals to investigation whether pharmaceutical companies are engaging in unlawful practices in the sale of opioids, thus playing a major role in the current epidemic.
“I commend the attorney general for making this bold move and if the evidence lead where I think it will I encourage Mr. Shapiro to file the type of lawsuit that I have requested,” said Burns.
Last week, the Drug Enforcement Agency said they were more than 4,600 drug-related overdose deaths in Pennsylvania in 2016.
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AG Denn investigating whether drug manufacturers created opioid crisis
Jun 15, 2017 | The News Journal
By Brittany Horn
The Delaware Attorney General's office, as well as similar state offices across America, have been investigating whether opioid manufacturers "engaged in unlawful or deceptive practices" when marketing and selling these drugs.
Attorney General Matt Denn announced Thursday his office is participating in the national coalition of state attorneys general investigating these drug manufacturers, which came to light in a Wall Street Journal article published Wednesday. The national coalition of investigators will determine what role drug manufacturers may have played in creating or prolonging the national opioid and heroin epidemic, according to Denn's office.
No one has disclosed what companies are under investigation.
“These efforts to hold manufacturers of opioids financially responsible where the law allows are an important part of our overall effort to improve prevention and treatment of substance abuse,” Denn said in a statement Thursday. “If our investigations reveal that the manufacturers of these products violated Delaware law, we will seek to have them help pay for the fight to end the epidemic.”
The attorneys will use investigative tools available to them, like subpoenas for documents and testimony, to determine if manufacturers violated federal and state laws, according to Denn's office.
The state attorney general will also solicit bids for private law firms to serve as special counsel to begin an independent investigation into whether opioid manufacturers violated laws in Delaware. This work would not cost taxpayers any money but instead rely on a contingency fee basis, according to Denn's office.
The RPF, which is expected to be posted on state websites by the end of next week, would be required if the state determines there is a legal basis to bring a separate lawsuit by the state against any of the unnamed companies.
This announcement falls in line with Denn's attack on the heroin and opioid epidemic that has swept The First State, claiming 99 lives so far this year.
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Slatery investigating opioid crisis
Jun 15, 2017 | Nashville Post
By Cari Wade Gervin
Two days after a lawsuit was filed in Sullivan County against the manufacturers of OxyContin, Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery has announced he is leading a coalition of attorneys general from across the country in comprehensive investigations into the roots of the opioid epidemic.
Although the officials are not currently publicly identifying any targets, the investigations are reportedly looking into the widespread prescribing and use of opioids, the role parties involved in the manufacture and distribution of opioids may have played in creating or prolonging the problem, and whether manufacturers have engaged in unlawful practices in the marketing and sale of opioids.
"There is not a single community in Tennessee, or a region of the country for that matter, that has not witnessed the devastating impact of opioid abuse," Slatery said in a press release announcing the investigations. "At the appropriate time, you can be assured Tennessee will take decisive action against those parties responsible for harming so many families."
Nationwide and in Tennessee, opioids — prescription and illicit — are the main driver of drug overdose deaths. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, opioids were involved in 33,091 deaths in 2015 including 1,451 in Tennessee, and opioid overdoses have quadrupled since 1999.
On Tuesday, Slatery confirmed that an investigation of some kind was underway, stating, "Our Office has been working very hard for some time now determining the activities of third parties involved in the manufacture and distribution of opioids. We are using every investigative tool the legislature has placed at our disposal, including pre-litigation subpoena and discovery, to determine the appropriate courses of action for our State. Our objective is to identify and hold accountable those parties responsible for this opioid epidemic."
It is unclear which other states have joined Tennessee in the investigation. Two states, Mississippi and Ohio, have sued the pharmaceutical manufacturers of opioids. House Speaker Beth Harwell has asked Slatery to join the Ohio suit.
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Shapiro: AGs probing role of Big Pharma in opioid crisis
Jun 16, 2017 | The Daily Intern
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced Thursday that his office is leading a national investigation into the role played by pharmaceutical companies in “creating and prolonging” the opioid crisis that is now claiming 13 lives a day in the state.
Shapiro said the investigation is being conducted jointly with attorneys general in states across the country.
Last year, opioids and heroin were blamed for 4,642 deaths in Pennsylvania. That was a 37 percent increase over 2015, when there were 3,383 overdose deaths. The death toll last year is almost double the 2,498 lives claimed by overdoses in 2014, according the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
Shapiro said that “the majority” of American states are involved and the attorneys general involved come from both major political parties. The attorneys general in Massachusetts and New York made similar announcements around the same time as Shapiro’s.
He declined to say whether he believes the lawsuit will lead to criminal charges or a civil lawsuit. He also declined to say which companies are the target of the investigation.
The coalition of attorneys general is using investigative tools, including subpoenas for documents and testimony to determine the appropriate steps moving forward, Shapiro said.
“I will follow the evidence, to hold everyone accountable, no matter how big or powerful,” Shapiro said. “Our ongoing investigation is going straight into the boardrooms of pharmaceutical companies.”
Gov. Tom Wolf commended Shapiro for taking action.
“While we have taken steps to expand treatment for those suffering and expand resources for law enforcement and health professionals, the death toll is still rising in our state,” Wolf said in a statement. “I thank Attorney General Shapiro for taking a lead role in today’s action and for being a vital partner in our fight against heroin and overuse of prescription opioids.”
Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa, D-Allegheny County, had announced Thursday that he intends to author a legislative resolution calling on Gov. Tom Wolf and Shapiro to consider filing a lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies.
Costa said he plans to move forward with his resolution because he wants to see the attorney general move beyond investigating and actually file a lawsuit.
‘Part of the solution’
The drug companies contributed to the drug crisis, “they should be part of the solution,” Costa said.
A similar resolution, authored by state Rep. Thomas Caltagirone, D-Philadelphia, has already been introduced in the state House.
Costa said any money gained from settlements from the pharmaceutical companies should be placed into reserve accounts to pay for addiction treatment.
“We’ve seen the evidence of the epidemic first-hand. If seeing those things doesn’t change you or move you to action, I don’t know what will. But sadly, marketing tactics work, bringing in billions of dollars annually for big pharma. I question when it became OK to put a price on a human life,” Costa said. “This issue isn’t going to fix itself — we need action and voices around the table that are committed to saving lives.”
Ohio Attorney General Mike Dewine announced two weeks ago that he is suing five pharmaceutical companies. Dewine alleges that the companies engaged in fraudulent marketing regarding the risks and benefits of their prescription drugs, “which fueled Ohio’s opioid epidemic,” according to the statement from his office announcing the lawsuit.
Kentucky has settled with two pharmaceutical companies for a combined total of almost $40 million in lawsuits centering on the drugs OxyContin and fentanyl.
Shapiro said the investigation Pennsylvania is now involved with is broader than the earlier state-by-state efforts.
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Attorney General Shapiro: Pennsylvania is part of multi-state opioids investigation
Jun 15, 2017 | Penn Live
By Charles Thompson
Attorney General Josh Shapiro said Thursday he is part of a bipartisan group of Attorneys General nationwide investigating drug manufacturers' roles in "creating or prolonging" America's opioid abuse crisis.
The new multi-state probe is looking specifically, Shapiro said, at corporate marketing and sales practices.
News of the probe rolled out in scattershot press conferences in several states Thursday, apparently to give some of the affected AGs a chance to counter public impressions that they weren't being as aggressive as those in other states that have already filed suits against drugmakers.
It was not immediately how many state prosecutors are involved in the joint effort, but Shapiro said it is involving a majority of the 50 states.
The new multi-state effort may take months, or even years, to produce results.
But prosecutors involved are hoping it can achieve a seminal result like that that resulted in the major multi-state settlements with America's large cigarette manufacturers in 1998.
Pennsylvania, like many states, has been seeing spikes in drug overdose deaths and public costs for treatment of addicts and the widespread provision of overdose anitdotes drug like Naloxone to first-responders.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration said drug overdose deaths rose by 37 percent last year across Pennsylvania last year, to a total of 4,642.
According to the DEA's data, prescription or illegal opioids such as heroin were implicated in 85 percent of the deaths, and some of the largest increases occurred in Pennsylvania's most rural counties.
Noting many heroin users started by abusing prescription opioids, Shapiro said this investigation "is going to hold everyone, everyone, accountable for their role in this tragedy, no matter how big and powerful they are."
The AGs have issued civil investigative subpoenas for documents and testimony to determine the appropriate course of action going forward, Shapiro's office said in a release accompanying Thursday's announcement.
Reviews of that material are currently underway.
As they are completed, the state legal officers will try to determine whether they have actions to pursue in state courts, or a unified action in federal court. The AGs office refused to identify any specific targets on Thursday.
State and local leaders nationwide are studying ways to claw back billions from the companies who make and sell the powerful painkillers.
Just last month, the attorney general in Ohio - through outside counsel - sued five drugmakers, alleging they made false and deceptive statements about the risks and benefits of prescription opioids.
Ohio has the fifth-highest rate of overdose deaths in the county, with 29.9 deaths per 100,000 people. Pennsylvania is right behind in sixth place, with 26.3 deaths per 100,000.
According to Reuters, additional lawsuits against opioid manufacturers have been filed by two California counties, the city of Chicago, four counties in New York, and Mississippi.
Shapiro's staffers said Thursday the larger AGs' group is taking a different tack, one that is relying more on the upfront use of internal investigative tools.
Their hope is it will lead to a substantial, and possibly faster-moving, case on the back end.
The Attorney General's office rarely speaks about investigations that are pending.
But in this case, a top Shapiro aide speaking on background after Thursday's announcement, said the point was to let Pennsylvanians know things are happening here, as well.
"It's a unique circumstance that has a dramatic impact around the state," the staffer said.
"We're making clear that we're doing something about it... We're showing that Pennsylvania is part of the multi-state, national investigation that's been looking into these practices."
PennLive's sought reaction to Thursday's announcement from the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the main national trade association for the drug industry.
A PhRMA spokeswoman declined comment on the states' investigation.
She also noted, however, that the industry is working hard to support the appropriate use of prescription medicines and to address prescription drug abuse and the growing problem of opioid abuse and addiction.
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Brad Schimel, other attorneys general investigating opioid manufacturers
Jun 15, 2017 | The Capital Times
By Jessie Opoien
Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel said Thursday he is involved in an ongoing investigation into whether pharmaceutical companies broke the law in the marketing and sale of opioid medications.
Schimel is part of a bipartisan group of attorneys general investigating "what role the opioid manufacturers may have played in creating or prolonging this epidemic and are utilizing investigative tools, including subpoenas for documents and testimony, to determine the appropriate course of legal action to address the ongoing opioid epidemic," according to a news release from the state Department of Justice.
Wisconsin's elected officials have made combating heroin and opioid abuse a priority in recent years, marked in particular by the Legislature's HOPE Agenda, a collection of nationally-recognized legislative efforts to fight abuse and expand treatment options.
Under Schimel's direction, Wisconsin has led a group of 43 states in a lawsuit alleging the manufacturer of Suboxone violated antitrust laws in an effort to hold onto its monopoly over the drug.
"While it is highly unusual for the Wisconsin Department of Justice to discuss any open investigation, I can confirm today that DOJ has for some time been examining and will continue to examine the practices of opioid manufacturers to determine whether legal action is warranted. There is no silver bullet to solving this ongoing nationwide crisis," Schimel said in a statement.
Schimel also noted that Wisconsin received a settlement in 2007 as the result of a multi-state lawsuit against Purdue Pharma's marketing practices.
"DOJ is no stranger to litigation in this area and will work to solve this problem with our partners in the law enforcement, medical, dental, substance abuse treatment and business communities," he said.
The targets of the investigation are not currently being identified.
Wisconsin has seen a 10 percent drop in prescription of opioids from the third quarter of 2015 to the third quarter of 2016, Schimel said in an interview last year. He credited that in part to the DOJ's "Dose of Reality" campaign, launched in fall 2015, aimed at combatting the opioid abuse problem through law enforcement, effective treatment interventions and prevention.
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States join forces to probe opioid drug companies
Jun 16, 2017 | Consumer Affairs
By Mark Huffman
A number of state attorneys general have announced a joint investigation to determine whether pharmaceutical companies selling opioid drugs have violated laws.
The announcement comes as states are grappling with the human and financial toll of opioid addiction. The probe appears to follow along the lines of a case laid out by Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine, who sued five opioid manufacturers earlier this month.
That lawsuit alleges that the drug companies engaged in fraud in the marketing of these drugs to clinicians, minimizing their risks. Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen says the multi-state probe wants to determine if these drug companies played any role in producing the nation's opioid drug epidemic.
"The opioid epidemic continues to have a devastating impact in Connecticut," Jepsen said. "It would be irresponsible to predict at this stage whether our efforts will lead to legal action or relief, but Connecticut residents can be assured that we will pursue this investigation fully."
Rising death toll
Jepsen says 917 Connecticut residents died from drug overdoses in 2016. Nationwide, he says prescription and illicit opioids are the main driver of drug overdose deaths. Opioid overdoses have quadrupled since 1999, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
“I want to know whether drug companies, seeking higher profits, have recklessly and unlawfully pushed addictive opioids,” said Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan. “We must hold drug companies accountable for their role in the epidemic levels of opioid overdoses and deaths in Illinois and around the country.”
Madigan cites data from the Illinois Department of Public Health showing the state was one of 14 with statistically significant increases in overall drug overdose deaths in recent years. Those numbers show there were 559 overdose deaths in 2015 that were directly tied to prescription opioids.
Small state, big problem
The state of Maine recently released a detailed report on drug overdoses,, finding a nearly 40% increase in deaths over 2016. Maine Attorney General Janet Mills says most were directly related to opioid drug abuse.
According to the report only five Maine counties had more than 10 drug deaths in 2015. By last year, the number of counties had doubled to 10. Portland, with 5% of the state's population, had 11% of the overdose deaths last year. Bangor has 2% of Maine's population but had 9% of the overdose deaths in 2016.
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Arizona Opioid maker target of state AG probe
Jun 15, 2017 | Arizona Capitol Times
By Howard Fischer
Attorney General Mark Brnovich is looking into the marketing practices of an Arizona firm that manufactures opioids.
Documents filed by Insys Therapeutics with the Securities and Exchange Commission disclose that the Chandler-based company has received a “civil investigative demand” from officials both here and in several other states. And the filing also says the company understands that “numerous physicians” within each of the states also have been served with subpoenas about their interactions with Insys.
The company says the demands want to know about its sales and marketing practices related to Subsys, a form of the opiate fentanyl which is applied by spraying it under the tongue. It is currently the company’s only approved product.
Mia Garcia, spokeswoman for Brnovich, declined to comment.
“As a general rule, our office does not announce potential ongoing investigations prior to the filing of a consumer fraud lawsuit or settlement agreement,” she said.
But on Thursday Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced his office is working “with a bipartisan coalition of a majority of state attorneys general to evaluate whether manufacturers have engaged in unlawful practices in the marketing and sale of opioids.” Garcia would not say whether Arizona is part of that effort.
It also comes as Reuters reports that federal prosecutors in Massachusetts told a judge that a former Insys manager has agreed to plead guilty in connection with charges that the firm was involved in defrauding insurers to pay for the expensive drug. A total of six former company executives and managers, including former CEO Michael Babich, are accused to participating in a scheme to bribe doctors to prescribe the drug.
And the disclosure follows an executive order issued earlier this week by Gov. Doug Ducey giving state health officials broad powers to investigate cases of opioid overdoses. That comes as state officials cited statistics that all manufacturers sold 431 million doses of the drug in Arizona last year, a state with just 6.9 million residents.
There was no immediate response from company officials to the disclosure in the SEC filings.
But in a press release last month about the charges against the former officials, new CEO Saeed Motahari said Insys “has taken appropriate steps to strive to ensure that ethical standards of conduct and patient interests are at the heart of all business decisions.”
The central question in all existing inquiries on opioid abuse is whether the drug is being overprescribed – and whether any of the blame rests with the manufacturers.
That theory was laid out in a lawsuit filed last month against several companies – not including Insys – by Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine.
“These drug manufacturers led prescribers to believe that opioids were not addictive, that addiction was an easy thing to overcome, or that addiction could actually be treated by taking even more opioids,” he said in a prepared statement. “They knew they were wrong, but they did it anyway.”
There is ample precedent if Arizona decides to go after Insys.
The company reports it entered into an “assurance of voluntary compliance” with the state of Oregon which “requires us to maintain certain control and processes around our promotional and sales activity related to Sybsys in Oregon.” While Insys reports it did not admit any violation of law or regulation, it did agree pay about $1.1 million.
Insys also reports it paid $2.9 million to New Hampshire and a $500,000 contribution to a charity to be used to prevent or remediate problems relating to abuse, misuse or “misprescribing” of opioid drugs.
The company reports it also is in discussions with the attorney general of Illinois after that state filed suit and anticipates a “probable loss” of $500,000 in connection with an investigation in Massachusetts.
Insys got attention during the 2016 election when it was disclosed the company gave $500,000 to the campaign to defeat Proposition 205 which would have legalized the recreational use of marijuana.
J.P. Holyoak, manager of the unsuccessful legalization campaign, charged that the company did not want to make marijuana more widely available so it could “push their far more addictive, far more harmful and far more dangerous opioid drugs.”
In its own prepared statement at the time, Insys said it opposed the initiative “because it fails to protect the safety of Arizona’s citizens, and particularly its children.” And the company noted that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved marijuana for any medical use.
“We believe that all available medicines should meet the clinical standards set by the FDA,” the statement said.
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Pa. AG says his office is investigating opioid manufacturers
Jun 15, 2017 | Newsworks
By Ben Allen
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro said he's investigating opioid manufacturers, along with attorneys general in at least 25 other states.
The announcement comes after other states and counties have filed lawsuits alleging pharmaceutical companies helped create the crisis.
AG Shapiro didn't give many specifics on the investigation, only saying that it involved a group of Republican and Democratic attorneys general from across the U.S.
His office said it includes subpoenas for documents and testimony from the manufacturers of opioids.
But he wouldn't say how many states were participating, what companies are being targeted, or whether it was civil or criminal in nature.
"I want you to know that I will follow the evidence to hold everyone, everyone accountable and responsible no matter how big or powerful they are," said Shapiro.
Others have filed lawsuits recently, including Mississippi, Ohio, and counties in Illinois, New York and California.
Some legal experts have said these cases will be more difficult than the landmark 1998 tobacco settlement, because the opioid pills aren't being used as directed. The most aggressive drug company - Purdue - also made changes after a settlement with the federal government in 2007.
"This is a broad, bipartisan, multi-state investigation of which Pennsylvania is one of the lead states. We have made great progress in it, and we're going to continue to work diligently in this effort," Shapiro adds.
Drug overdoses killed more than 4,600 people in Pennsylvania last year.
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State AGs Open Probe Into Opioid Drugmakers
Jun 15, 2017 | Law360
By Rachel Graf
Attorneys general throughout the U.S. have launched a joint investigation into how drugmakers might have contributed to the country’s opioid epidemic, the latest indication that pharmaceutical companies are being increasingly scrutinized as the crisis worsens.
The probe will focus on whether drugmakers’ marketing and sales tactics have prolonged an epidemic that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates killed more than 33,000 people in 2015. The bipartisan group, comprised of attorneys general from the majority of states, will use resources including subpoenas for documents and testimony during its investigation.
“I want to know whether drug companies, seeking higher profits, have recklessly and unlawfully pushed addictive opioids,” Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan said in a statement. “We must hold drug companies accountable for their role in the epidemic levels of opioid overdoses and deaths in Illinois and around the country.”
Attorneys general from Illinois, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Texas, Tennessee and Massachusetts are among those involved in the investigation into unnamed drugmakers, and Ohio’s attorney general filed a suit involving similar claims last month.
The suit, filed in state court, alleges drugmakers Allergan, Endo, Johnson & Johnson unit Janssen, Purdue and Teva unit Cephalon exacerbated the epidemic by downplaying opioids’ risks of addiction.
“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,” Janssen said in an emailed statement about recent litigation. “Our opioid pain medications give doctors and patients important choices to help manage the debilitating effects of chronic pain.”
New York’s Suffolk County, two California counties and Chicago have made similar allegations against the drugmakers in recent years.
Teva agreed last month to pay $1.6 million to resolve the lawsuit brought by California's Santa Clara and Orange counties in 2014 over the company’s representation of opioids’ addictiveness.
Allergan PLC sells Kadian, Norco and several generics owned by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., while Cephalon Inc. sells Actiq and Fentora. Purdue Pharma sells OxyContin, MS Contin, Dilaudid, Butrans, Hysingla and Targiniq, and Endo Health Solutions sells Percocet, Percodan, Opana and Zydone. Janssen sells Duragesic and Nucynta. -
Tennessee counties slap Big Pharma with lawsuit over opioid epidemic costs
Jun 15, 2017 | Knoxville News Sentinel
By Jamie Satterfield
Three Tennessee judicial districts on Tuesday announced a legal effort to make the drugmakers who supplied the opiates that addicted millions — Big Pharma — pay for the epidemic their drugs created.
Prosecutors in three judicial districts in upper East Tennessee announced Tuesday morning the filing of a lawsuit in Sullivan County Circuit Court against opioid drugmakers Purdue Pharma, Mallinckrodt and Endo.
Tennessee has more opiate addicts per capita than every state in the nation except West Virginia. Sullivan County is considered an epicenter, so much so its law enforcement agencies snared their own reality television shows.
The lawsuit comes on the heels of similar governmental legal action filed in Ohio, Illinois, Mississippi, New York and California. The Cherokee Nation in May sued in tribal court. Another lawsuit filed in Washington in January alleged that Purdue Pharma, makers of OxyContin, knew the drug was being sold on the streets and collected millions for it and did nothing to stop it.
In West Tennessee, Shelby County is considering filing a similar lawsuit.
Tennessee, however, is not a party to the lawsuit. Sullivan County District Attorney General Barry Staubus said he and his two prosecutorial partners in the neighboring 1st and 3rd judicial districts did not consult with the state attorney general’s office before filing the lawsuit.
Such lawsuits borrow a page from the playbook state attorneys general used to hit Big Tobacco with the financial cost of its addictive products in 1998. States made billions and still are, money that was supposed to go to help people quit smoking and cover the government’s medical bills for the physical toll cigarettes caused. The big cigarette makers agreed to pay out $206 billion in the first 25 years, and they’ll keep paying indefinitely after that.
It didn’t stop people from smoking, or the tobacco makers from making money. Public awareness of not only the addictive properties of tobacco but the stew of chemicals in the tobacco used in cigarettes lowered the number of smokers over time.
But the opioid legal field on which this game of wielding executive power in the judicial branch of government will be played is much different for these state attorneys general.
It wasn’t hard to prove tobacco makers hid the addictive side of their product and put the drug into the hands of unsuspecting buyers. Smokers smoked, no idea they were inhaling a drug that would hook them physically and mentally. Big Tobacco knew it. Once lawyers proved they knew it and hid it, it wasn’t hard to convince courts tobacco makers bore direct responsibility.
Big pharmaceutical companies don’t put their drugs into the hands of patients. They made the highly addictive opiate drugs and courted doctors to prescribe them. Doctors were the ones who prescribed them for all manner of pain — from a back ache to cancer. Pharmacies sold them the addictive drugs.
Not only will these state attorneys general and upper East Tennessee prosecutors have to prove information about the addictive nature of opiates was hidden from patients, but they also must show from whom it was hidden. Did the pharmaceutical companies mislead doctors? Or, did the doctors hide it from the patients? Were pharmacists to blame?
And what of the patients themselves? Smokers bought cigarettes and smoked them, a proper use of the product. They got addicted and sick. There was no black market for cigarettes.
The opioid epidemic is fueled by people who kept using the drugs even after their pain subsided and people who grew addicted after using painkillers prescribed for someone else.
The Los Angeles Times revealed in an investigation into Purdue Pharma that the drugmaker sold the drug OxyContin as a 12-hour pain reliever but knew it wore off before then. Patients suffering withdrawals then took more than prescribed, leading them to become addicted and sick.
But a long history of overprescribing by doctors has also been documented by many media organizations. Opiate addiction and mounting overdose deaths hit epidemic proportions after medical professionals began profiting from pain clinics at which the addictive drugs were doled out with little, if any, examination.
Even the Justice Department has taken aim at the medical community, particularly in East Tennessee, where the U.S. aAttorney’s office has successfully sent doctors and other medical professionals tied to pain clinics to federal prison.
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Trump's opioid commission is meeting for the first time
Jun 16, 2017 | STAT News (Morning Rounds)
By Megan Thielking
President Trump’s opioid commission meets for the first time this morning, and they have a full agenda. The committee, run by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, is tasked with parsing out the best practices to prevent addiction, including how to educate prescribers and how to help states effectively use their prescription drug monitoring programs. They'll also assess how accessible addiction treatment services are and pinpoint areas that are lacking in resources. They’ll release their findings in a detailed report on the opioid crisis by October 1, though an interim report is expected out relatively soon.
Christie said earlier this week that one of the group’s first actions will be a proposal to ease HIPAA restrictions in cases of opioid overdose.
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