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Opioid Daily Media Report 9/8/17
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New Mexico sues opioid drug manufacturers, distributors
Sep 7, 2017 | Reuters
By Nate Raymond
New Mexico on Thursday sued eight opioid manufacturers and wholesale distributors, becoming the latest state or local government to file a lawsuit seeking to hold corporations accountable for a national drug addiction epidemic. -
New Mexico suing opioid makers, distributors
Sep 7, 2017 | Albuquerque Journal
By Maggie Shepard
New Mexico is the latest state to jump on the train of governments suing opioid makers and distributors. -
New Mexico files suit against opioid makers, wholesalers
Sep 7, 2017 | Associated Press
The New Mexico attorney general's office has filed a lawsuit accusing major manufacturers and distributors of prescription opioid medication of exacerbating the state's drug addiction crisis. -
New Mexico Sues Drugmakers, Distributors Over Opioid Crisis
Sep 8, 2017 | Wall Street Journal
By Sara Randazzo
New Mexico sued several major pharmaceutical companies and wholesale drug distributors on Thursday, arguing the corporations are partly to blame for rampant opioid addiction rates in the state. -
New Mexico Said To Be Suing Johnson & Johnson, Endo, Teva, Allergan & Others Over Their Role In Opioid Drug Epidemic
Sep 8, 2017 | The Bristol Observer
By Michael Puffer
Leaders from 25 Connecticut cities and towns traveled to Waterbury City Hall on Thursday to hear that city’s Mayor Neil M. O’Leary’s offer of a joint lawsuit against manufacturers of prescription opioid painkillers. -
Senator’s report documents deceit by former employees of embattled Insys
Sep 7, 2017 | FiercePharma
By Eric Sagonowsky
Insys Therapeutics already has former executives under indictment as it faces numerous investigations and lawsuits. Now, a new congressional report details some sales techniques by former employees at the company for powerful painkiller Subsys as the United States grapples with a deadly addiction epidemic. -
Drug Maker Faked Cancer Patients to Sell Addictive Opioids, Congressional Report Finds
Sep 7, 2017 | Gizmodo
By Rhett Jones
On Wednesday, Senator Claire McCaskill released a report on the findings of a congressional investigation into the practices of pharmaceutical company Insys Therapeutics. The jaw-dropping allegations detail the process in which agents systematically convinced insurers to pay for a highly-addictive opioid cancer pain drug for patients who didn’t have cancer. -
Fentanyl pharma firm rapped for role in US opioid epidemic
Sep 8, 2017 | Securing Industry
By Katrina Megget
Pharmaceutical firm Insys Therapeutics has been publicly accused of stoking the fentanyl opioid epidemic in the US through dodgy business tactics. -
Baton Rouge mulling lawsuit against major drug companies over opioid epidemic
| Greater Baton Rouge Business Report
By Sam Karlin
Baton Rouge could become the latest in a string of cities and counties throughout the country to sue national drug companies over their role in the nation’s opioid epidemic. -
Dem candidate for Binghamton Mayor Abdelazim announces plan to combat opioid addiction
Sep 7, 2017 | Binghamton Homepage
Democratic candidate for Binghamton Mayor Tarik Abdelazim is promising concrete actions to address our region's heroin epidemic if elected in November. -
Abdelazim wants city to join county opioid lawsuit, fund drug-free housing
Sep 7, 2017 | Press & Sun Bulletin
By Hannah Schwarz
Tarik Abdelazim, Democratic candidate for Binghamton mayor, Thursday called on the city to join the county's lawsuit against opioid manufacturers and commit a minimum of $200,000 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to outreach programs and drug-free housing. -
Mora County sues opioid manufacturers
Sep 8, 2017 | Las Vegas Optic
By Jason W. Brooks
Mora County is not the biggest place with the most resources. In fact, it's the sixth smallest county in New Mexico, both in area and population. -
Our say: County seeks legal tool to fight opioid surge (OPINION)
Sep 8, 2017 | Capital Gazette
By Editorial Board
Anne Arundel County’s Republican County Executive Steve Schuh isn’t usually grouped with Maryland’s Democratic Attorney General Brian Frosh. But the two — along with many other officials nationwide — clearly share at least one conviction: When it comes to the opioid epidemic that has nearly tripled overdose deaths in this state in the last decade, government needs to use every legal weapon at its disposal. -
KFDA News Channel 10 Early Show at 6am
Sep 8, 2017 | KFDA (CBS)
By Amarillo, TX
VIDEO LINK: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/29238860?token=f2df556c-f170-4dcf-b3b9-5d17d9a002a5 -
WAFB 9 News This Morning at 7am
Sep 8, 2017 | WAFB (CBS)
By Baton Rouge, LA
VIDEO LINK: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/29238938?token=f2df556c-f170-4dcf-b3b9-5d17d9a002a5 -
KRQE News 13 at 10pm
Sep 7, 2017 | KRQE (CBS)
By Albuquerque, NM
VIDEO LINK: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/29238954?token=f2df556c-f170-4dcf-b3b9-5d17d9a002a5 -
WIVT News Channel 34 at 11pm
Sep 7, 2017 | WIVT (ABC)
By Binghamton, NY
VIDEO LINK: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/29238959?token=f2df556c-f170-4dcf-b3b9-5d17d9a002a5 -
KOAT Action 7 News live at 6pm
Sep 7, 2017 | KOAT (ABC)
By Albuquerque, NM
VIDEO LINK; http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/29238961?token=f2df556c-f170-4dcf-b3b9-5d17d9a002a5 -
WSIL News 3 at 6:30pm
Sep 7, 2017 | WSIL (ABC)
By Paducah, KY
VIDEO LINK: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/29238975?token=f2df556c-f170-4dcf-b3b9-5d17d9a002a5 -
KFOX News at 5pm
Sep 7, 2017 | KFOX (FOX)
By El Paso, TX
VIDEO LINK: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/29238978?token=f2df556c-f170-4dcf-b3b9-5d17d9a002a5 -
KOB Eyewitness News 4 at 5pm
Sep 7, 2017 | KOB (NBC)
By Albuquerque, NM
VIDEO LINK: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/29238983?token=f2df556c-f170-4dcf-b3b9-5d17d9a002a5 -
KVIA 7 News at 5pm
Sep 7, 2017 | KVIA (ABC)
By El Paso, TX
VIDEO LINK: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/29238990?token=f2df556c-f170-4dcf-b3b9-5d17d9a002a5 -
WBFF 45 News at 4pm
Sep 7, 2017 | WBFF (Fox)
By Baltimore, MD
VIDEO LINK: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/29239005?token=f2df556c-f170-4dcf-b3b9-5d17d9a002a5
Traditional Media Coverage
Broadcast Media Coverage
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New Mexico sues opioid drug manufacturers, distributors
Sep 7, 2017 | Reuters
By Nate Raymond
New Mexico on Thursday sued eight opioid manufacturers and wholesale distributors, becoming the latest state or local government to file a lawsuit seeking to hold corporations accountable for a national drug addiction epidemic.
New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas accused Purdue Pharma LP, Johnson & Johnson, Allergan Plc, Endo International Plc and Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd of pushing addictive painkillers through deceptive marketing.
The lawsuit also accused wholesale distributors McKesson Corp, Cardinal Health Inc and AmerisourceBergen Corp of breaching their legal duties to monitor, detect and report suspicious orders of prescription opioids.
“New Mexico continues to endure the most catastrophic effects of the opioid crisis, all while major out of state corporations make billions in profits at the expense of our families and communities,” Balderas said in a statement.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, opioids were involved in over 33,000 deaths in 2015, the latest year for which data is available. The death rate has continued rising, according to estimates.
The lawsuit followed a wave of cases against drugmakers by Oklahoma, Mississippi, Ohio, Missouri, New Hampshire and South Carolina, as well as several cities and counties in states including California, Illinois and New York.
The drug wholesalers have likewise faced litigation, particularly in West Virginia, where several county commissions and cities have the three main ones, following lawsuits filed by the state’s attorney general.
New Mexico’s lawsuit, filed in the First Judicial District Court in Santa Fe County, contended that the drugmakers downplayed the risks of addiction to prescription opioids and falsely touted the benefits of their long-term use.
It also accused the wholesale distributors of violating their duties by selling large amounts of painkillers that were then diverted for illicit uses, helping to contribute to the opioid epidemic.
The lawsuit seeks damages, including for the costs New Mexico has incurred responding to the epidemic.
The companies have in similar cases denied wrongdoing. The drugmakers have said they acted responsibly in connection with marketing the drugs, which carry U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved labels warning about their risks.
“While we vigorously deny the allegations, we share public officials’ concerns about the opioid crisis and we are committed to working collaboratively to find solutions,” Purdue, the maker of OxyContin, said in a statement.
Cardinal Health in a statement called the lawsuit “misguided,” saying it was “launched in haste and without any factual investigation to support it.”
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New Mexico suing opioid makers, distributors
Sep 7, 2017 | Albuquerque Journal
By Maggie Shepard
New Mexico is the latest state to jump on the train of governments suing opioid makers and distributors.
Filing suit Thursday, state Attorney General Hector Balderas said the dozens of pharmaceutical companies and distributors should share in the responsibility of the devastation caused by the opioid crisis.
Citing New Mexico’s longtime place as one of the worst-hit areas in the nation, Balderas said he wants the companies to pay damages for past medical and human costs and to fund law enforcement and treatment in the future.
“For every pill sold in the state, they should invest in the safety net,” Balderas said after a news conference announcing the lawsuit Thursday.
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New Mexico files suit against opioid makers, wholesalers
Sep 7, 2017 | Associated Press
The New Mexico attorney general's office has filed a lawsuit accusing major manufacturers and distributors of prescription opioid medication of exacerbating the state's drug addiction crisis.
Attorney General Hector Balderas on Thursday announced the filing of the lawsuit in state district court against five of the nation's largest opioid manufacturers and three major wholesale distributors.
The suit accuses opioid manufacturers of aggressively pushing highly addictive and dangerous drugs and falsely representing to doctors that patients would rarely succumb to addiction. It accuses distributors of failing to monitor, investigate and report suspicious orders of prescription opiates.
Balderas said the lawsuit is modeled after on past litigation against tobacco companies designed to pay for ongoing drug enforcement and treatment efforts.
New Mexico's drug overdose death rate is far above the national average.
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New Mexico Sues Drugmakers, Distributors Over Opioid Crisis
Sep 8, 2017 | Wall Street Journal
By Sara Randazzo
New Mexico sued several major pharmaceutical companies and wholesale drug distributors on Thursday, arguing the corporations are partly to blame for rampant opioid addiction rates in the state.
The lawsuit, filed in state court in Santa Fe County, follows the lead of half a dozen other states that have also sued over the opioid crisis. All claim pharmaceutical companies played down the addictive risk of the painkillers in their marketing to the public and doctors, causing them to be widely prescribed for chronic pain and fueling addiction.
Most of the other states to sue, including New Hampshire, South Carolina, Ohio and Oklahoma, have focused their claims solely on the pharmaceutical companies. Dozens of cities and counties, meanwhile, have filed litigation against distributors, claiming they unlawfully sold painkillers into the regions and failed to monitor and report suspicious orders.
New Mexico is going after both camps.
Thursday's suit names drugmakers Purdue Pharma L.P., Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Johnson & Johnson, Endo International PLC and Allergan PLC, distributors AmerisourceBergen Corp., McKesson Corp., and Cardinal Health Inc., and various subsidiaries.
The companies have denied liability in the mounting litigation while stressing that they support the proper use of opioids. Teva, Endo, J&J and Purdue each said Thursday they are committed to working to prevent misuse of the drugs. J&J and Purdue added that they deny the allegations.
AmerisourceBergen said Thursday it will defend itself against the claims and reiterated a previous statement that wholesale drug distributors are logistics companies that don't make the drugs or have any direct contact with patients or prescriptions. McKesson and Cardinal didn't respond to a request for comment Thursday but have made similar statements to that of AmerisourceBergen in the past.
The state's attorney general, Hector Balderas, said Thursday that safeguards along the entire pipeline of drug distribution have failed, making it necessary to sue drugmakers and distributors. "We've been decimated by their profiteering and the risk associated with these painkillers," he said.
The lawsuit brings claims under public nuisance, unfair practices, Medicaid fraud, racketeering, fraud against taxpayers and negligence laws.
Since 2008, New Mexico has had one of the highest rates of drug overdose death in the U.S., according to the complaint. More than 500 New Mexico residents die each year from drug overdoses, the state says, around 70% of those from prescription opioids or heroin.
In Rio Arriba County, 64 out of every 1,000 babies born -- 10 times the national average -- are diagnosed with neonatal abstinence syndrome, caused by exposure to opioids while in the womb, according to the complaint.
Widespread prescription opioid addiction has led to record overdose rates nationwide, causing alarm among public-health officials, law enforcement and politicians. Those who become addicted to prescription pills often switch to illegal opioids, like heroin, when the painkillers become harder to come by.
Mr. Balderas, a Democrat, said he began his investigation soon after taking office in 2015. He said he hopes through the litigation to require any companies selling or bringing opioids into the state to put money toward drug treatment, law enforcement and first responders.
The state estimates it spent $890 million in 2007 alone on costs associated with prescription opioid abuse, including through excess medical costs, lost earnings from premature deaths and costs tied to correctional facilities and police.
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Sep 8, 2017 | The Bristol Observer
By Michael Puffer
Leaders from 25 Connecticut cities and towns traveled to Waterbury City Hall on Thursday to hear that city’s Mayor Neil M. O’Leary’s offer of a joint lawsuit against manufacturers of prescription opioid painkillers.
O’Leary expects most will join. Mayors and leaders from Naugatuck, Oxford, Wolcott, Roxbury, New Milford, Bristol, and Bridgeport have already agreed to participate, according to O’Leary and his lawyers.
Bristol’s Mayor Ken Cockayne said O’Leary had spoken to him about Waterbury’s intent to file suit about two months ago and had asked if the city wanted to take part as well.
O’Leary forwarded Cockayne the complaint, the Bristol mayor said, and he had Bristol’s lawyers review it. After the attorneys looked at the complaint and reviewed the facts within the complaint, they said the city should participate.
Cockayne said opioid abuse is a nation-wide problem, and it’s one that has not left Bristol unscathed. It has affected people of all walks of life and destroys families, he said. “We all know someone that this has affected.”
The suit’s intent, said Cockayne, is to fight back against the over-prescription of these drugs—which often starts off innocently enough as a prescription for pain killers following surgery.
Cockayne said participation in the suit will cost Bristol nothing, other than the time and effort to do the research to determine the cost of opioid abuse to the city.
However, said Cockayne, if the plaintiffs win the suit—- after the attorneys receive their cut of the settlement— Bristol will get a percentage of the settlement along with the other participating municipalities.
So far, Waterbury’s name stands alone on a legal complaint that went out to defendants Thursday.
It alleges that drug makers engaged in a coordinated and sophisticated campaign to mask the risks of opioid medications, while exaggerating benefits to create massive profits. Among other tactics, drug makers pushed opioid use for more common ailments, including back pain, arthritis and headaches, according to the suit.
Two drug companies reached Thursday say they’re committed to working with medical professionals and others to ensure safe use of their products.
In 2016, 917 people overdosed on drugs, mostly opioids, in Connecticut, according to the suit.
The suit names as defendants three doctors involved with promoting opioids nationally, along with drug makers Perdu Pharma of Stamford, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries of Israel, Cephalone Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Endo Health Solutions, along with subsidiaries of these companies.
Teva and Perdue emailed responses, both saying their committed to appropriate promotion and use of their products. Teva spokeswoman Doris Saltkill said her company has programs to educate providers and patients on safe use, and is eager to work with regulators, medical providers and public officials.
“While we vigorously deny the allegations, we share local officials’ concerns about the opioid crisis and we are committed to working collaboratively to find solutions,” said Purdue spokesman Robert Josephson.
Josephson noted his company’s “OxyContin” product accounts for only 2 percent of the analgesic prescription market nationally, yet Purdue is an “industry leader” in the development of abuse deterrent medicines.
Paul Hanly, chairman of Simmons Hanly Conroy, said the company has been making the same claim— falsely — for years.
This is the first case of its kind against drug makers originating in Connecticut, but the same argument is being made in courtrooms in other states.
Hanly said he expects the suit to return “hundreds of millions” of dollars to affected communities. The lawyers are taking the case up on a contingency basis and will claim one-third of any proceeds, O’Leary said.
As of July 21, Simmons Hanly Conroy had filed similar cases on behalf of eight New York counties, with one more pending. The company also represents an Illinois county and two parishes in Louisiana.
Connecticut Attorney General George C. Jepsen’s office is considering similar action.
“The Office of the Attorney General is undertaking an investigation to evaluate whether unlawful practices have occurred in the marketing and distribution of prescription opioids,” spokesman Samuel Carmody wrote in response to questions Thursday.
Carmody said the office can’t comment on the status of the investigation, but Jepsen regards it as a “top priority” and is “committing significant resources to it,” while also coordinating with colleagues across the country.
As for when the suit is expected to reach court and be resolved, Cockayne said the suit is very new. A settlement is not likely around the corner. He said similar cases have taken years to resolve.
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Senator’s report documents deceit by former employees of embattled Insys
Sep 7, 2017 | FiercePharma
By Eric Sagonowsky
Insys Therapeutics already has former executives under indictment as it faces numerous investigations and lawsuits. Now, a new congressional report details some sales techniques by former employees at the company for powerful painkiller Subsys as the United States grapples with a deadly addiction epidemic.
Sen. Claire McCaskill's report, released Wednesday, highlights past efforts at Insys to bypass prior authorization "barriers" to expand the reach—and sales—of opioid painkiller Subsys. The drug is approved to treat breakthrough pain from cancer, but numerous lawsuits and investigations center over the company's marketing efforts outside of the labeled indication.
In one instance, Sen. McCaskill's report details a phone call from an Insys employee to a pharmacy benefit manager, during which the undisclosed Insys employee said he or she was calling from a doctor's office. The Insys employee also didn't give the full picture on the patient's source of pain. That patient, Sarah Fuller, passed away last year from an alleged overdose; her family has since filed a lawsuit against the drugmaker and other parties.
The prior authorization process requires patients’ physicians to secure coverage for certain drugs that could be dangerous or that have cheaper alternatives. The report says Insys employees received “significant financial incentives and management pressure—including quotas and group and individual bonuses—to boost the rate of Subsys authorizations.”
In response to a request from the senator's office, new Insys CEO Saeed Motahari said his company has overhauled its staff from previous years and replaced top management.
Further, the company has "actively taken the appropriate steps to place ethical standards of conduct and patient interests at the heart of business decisions," the helmsman wrote to Sen. McCaskill. He joined Insys four months ago.
Initally, Sen. McCaskill requested information from Johnson & Johnson, Depomed, Mylan, Insys and Purdue as part of her opioid investigation. She has since requested information from Mallinckrodt, Endo, Teva and Allergan. The senator is also examining distribution practices from McKesson, AmerisourceBergen and Cardinal Health.
Sen. McCaskill's report is the latest look into promotional tactics at an embattled drugmaker that has weathered scrutiny on its Subsys marketing for years. After arresting lower-level workers, the Justice Department last year charged former CEO Michael Babich and a group of other execs. In July, Babich’s wife, a former saleswoman at the drugmaker, pleaded guilty to a kickback scheme on the med.
Last week, Arizona filed its own lawsuit alleging fraudulent marketing to boost sales for the painkiller fentanyl.
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Drug Maker Faked Cancer Patients to Sell Addictive Opioids, Congressional Report Finds
Sep 7, 2017 | Gizmodo
By Rhett Jones
On Wednesday, Senator Claire McCaskill released a report on the findings of a congressional investigation into the practices of pharmaceutical company Insys Therapeutics. The jaw-dropping allegations detail the process in which agents systematically convinced insurers to pay for a highly-addictive opioid cancer pain drug for patients who didn’t have cancer.
The case of Insys’s corrupt practices have led to a federal criminal indictment against six former executives on fraud and racketeering charges. McCaskill’s office is leading an ongoing investigation into the complex web of deception that was allegedly employed by the company to trick insurance companies into covering the costs of a sprayable form of fentanyl called Subsys.
The powerful opioid was approved for use by cancer patients in 2012 and due to its high costs, insurers required “prior-authorization” before they would pay. But according to the report, Insys found that it wasn’t selling enough of the drug to cancer patients and implemented a program to expand its use through a combination of paying illegal kickbacks to doctors and having salespeople use scripts to mislead insurance reps.
McCaskill’s report details one such call that you can listen to here. In the recording, an Insys employee contacts the insurance company to obtain prior approval and, using a script, gives the impression that they are calling on behalf of the doctor’s office. The employee claims that they are “with” the patient’s doctor’s office and pretends to be flipping through the patient’s transcript and says out loud that Subsys is “intended for the management of breakthrough cancer pain.” With that full phrase being established, the Insys rep then says the patient has “breakthrough pain.” Multiple times, two different employees from the insurance company pressed the obfuscating employee about whether the drug was being prescribed for “breakthrough cancer pain” and each time the rep’s answer left out the word cancer.
This technique worked on countless occasions. In this particular case, the slippery Insys representative was calling on behalf of a woman from New Jersey named Sarah Fuller. Fuller died of a Subsys overdose in 2016.
Saeed Motahari took over as CEO of Insys in April and in a letter to McCaskill’s office he wrote that, “Over the past several years, Insys has actively taken the appropriate steps to place ethical standards of conduct and patient interests at the heart of our business decisions.” According to Reuters, an Insys press release claimed that the company “disagreed with ‘certain characterizations’ in McCaskill’s report.”
The congressional investigation into Insys’s apparent systemic corruption will continue and former employees face their own individual legal troubles. The six executives that were indicted in December have submitted not guilty pleas while other lower level employees have admitted their guilt in the scheme.
In July, Natalie Levine, a sales rep who is married to the company’s former-CEO Michael Babich, pleaded guilty to charges of paying illegal kickbacks to doctors. Levine told prosecutors that she taught sales reps to look “for doctors that are money hungry,” and “might be willing to ‘play ball,’” according to court documents.
It’s not yet clear where McCaskill’s investigation will lead. Wednesday’s report is part of a broader probe into opioid manufacturers including Purdue, Johnson & Johnson, Mylan, and Depomed.
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Fentanyl pharma firm rapped for role in US opioid epidemic
Sep 8, 2017 | Securing Industry
By Katrina Megget
Pharmaceutical firm Insys Therapeutics has been publicly accused of stoking the fentanyl opioid epidemic in the US through dodgy business tactics.
The Arizona-based company deployed "significant efforts… undertaken to reduce barriers to the prescription of Subsys, its powerful fentanyl product" that is approved to treat breakthrough pain from cancer, according to a report published by US Senator Claire McCaskill.
These efforts include actions to mislead pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and falsifying medical histories of patients in order to obtain prescriptions and to ensure off-label use. Insys also "lacked even basic measures to prevent its employees from manipulating the prior authorization process", required to obtain fentanyl, the report claims based on documents received from the firm.
The accusations are published in a report in response to the growing opioid epidemic in the US that has claimed 64,000 lives just last year – a 22 per cent rise on 2015. Figures from the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) also show that Medicare Part D spending on commonly abused opioids increased 165 per cent between 2006 and 2015, and one out of three Part D recipients received at least one prescription opioid in 2016 at a cost of $4.1bn.
Heroin and the abuse of addictive prescription-only opioid painkillers have contributed to the epidemic but in the past year or so the situation has been exacerbated by the influx of counterfeit prescription drugs and heroin that have been laced with fentanyl, which is 50 to 100 time stronger than morphine.
Drug deaths involving fentanyl more than doubled from 2015 to 2016 to more than 20,000, an increase of 540 per cent in three years, according to the most recent report from the National Centre for Health Statistics.
Sen. McCaskill has pointed some of the blame for the growth of the epidemic at the pharmaceutical companies that manufacture opioids, such as Insys Therapeutics.
Earlier this year, she issued wide-ranging requests for documents related to opioid sales and marketing efforts from five such manufacturers – Insys, Depomed, Johnson & Johnson, Mylan and Purdue. The requests focused on internal estimates concerning the risk of opioid addiction, compliance audits and reports concerning sales and marketing policies, marketing and business plans, materials related to manufacturer payments to physicians and manufacturer-created physician presentations, funding of educational materials targeted to opioid-prescribing physicians, and funding for major pain advocacy groups and other groups.
To prevent the over prescription and abuse of powerful and expensive drugs like Subsys, insurers, often using PBMs, employ a process known as prior authorisation, which is essentially additional approval from the insurer or PBM, and which requires meeting certain criteria, before the drug can be dispensed.
In the case of Insys, which is already facing several lawsuits over its marketing practices of the drug, documents revealed an audio recording where Insys employees repeatedly misled a pharmacy benefits manager by claiming to call from a doctor's office to obtain prescription approval for a patient, who later died "due to allegedly improper and excessive Subsys use".
Insys also allegedly created a prior authorisation unit, known at one point as the Insys Reimbursement Center (IRC), to intervene with PBMs and secure reimbursements. According to McCaskill's report, "employees reportedly received significant financial incentives and management pressure – including quotas and group and individual bonuses – to boost the rate of Subsys authorisations". Employees reportedly falsified medical histories for prospective Subsys patients fraudulently asserting that the patient had a cancer diagnosis and called PMBs claiming they were calling from a doctor's office or were calling on behalf of the patient's doctor.
"According to public reporting, lawsuits from Subsys patients, and criminal indictments, Insys Therapeutics has repeatedly employed aggressive and likely illegal techniques to boost prescriptions for its fentanyl product Subsys," the report said. "These efforts have included actions to undermine critical safeguards in the prior authorisation process – with Insys officials aware, at the very least, of the serious danger of these acts occurring. The high stakes of opioid over prescription – including patient death – demand close attention to these practices by law enforcement officials, policymakers, and the PBMs charged with approving or rejecting fentanyl treatment."
In a statement, McCaskill said: "There is extensive evidence that Insys aggressively pressured its employees and the entire medical system to increase the use of a fentanyl product during a national epidemic that was taking the lives of tens pf thousands of Americans a year in order to make more money – it's hard to imagine anything more despicable. Their attempts to manipulate the prescription approval process for this drug appears to have been systemic and anyone responsible for this manipulation deserves to be prosecuted."
As part of the report, Insys was asked whether it had addressed the issues that had been highlighted in other reports and lawsuits. Insys president and chief executive Saeed Motahari said the company had "completely transformed its employee base over the last several years", including in "key management positions", and had "actively taken the appropriate steps to place ethical standards of conduct and patient interests at the heart of [its] business decisions".
In a statement in response to the report, the company said: "We agree with Senator McCaskill that the opioid epidemic must be addressed and we have therefore co-operated extensively with her investigation. We respectfully disagree with certain characterisations in the staff report. The report relates to activities of former employees of our company and matters that the company has addressed in its own efforts and in connection with investigations by the Department of Justice and state attorney general offices."
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Baton Rouge mulling lawsuit against major drug companies over opioid epidemic
| Greater Baton Rouge Business Report
By Sam Karlin
Baton Rouge could become the latest in a string of cities and counties throughout the country to sue national drug companies over their role in the nation’s opioid epidemic.
he Parish Attorney today added a measure to the Metro Council agenda that would allow the city-parish to contract with Baron & Budd, a national law firm currently representing several dozen jurisdictions throughout the country against pharmaceutical companies.
If the Metro Council passes the measure and Mayor Sharon Weston Broome signs off on the deal, the firm is poised to file a lawsuit against the three largest drug distributors in the country: McKesson Corp, Cardinal Health and AmerisourceBergen.
“We know there’s a problem in Baton Rouge. We know there’s a problem in Louisiana,” says Baron & Budd attorney Burton LeBlanc. “The expenses related to fighting this public nuisance should be borne by the companies that caused the problem and not the taxpayer.”
Louisiana has been particularly hard hit by the opioid epidemic and is one of a handful of states that have more opioid prescriptions than residents.
The lawsuits filed by Baron & Budd allege the drug distributors have failed to report to the federal government “suspicious orders” of prescription opioids, LeBlanc says, generally based on the number of prescriptions being far higher than the number of people in a given city or state. That, LeBlanc argues, is a violation of the federal Controlled Substances Act.
McKesson and Cardinal Health did not respond to requests for comment this afternoon. An AmerisourceBergen spokeswoman says distributors don’t have the capability or qualifications to interfere with doctors’ prescriptions of opioids.
“We intend to vigorously defend ourselves in this litigation while continuing to work collaboratively to combat drug diversion,” AmerisourceBergen director of external communications Lauren Moyer says in a statement.
AmerisourceBergen, along with McKesson and Cardinal Health, paid millions of dollars earlier this year to settle lawsuits alleging the distributors failed to report suspicious orders to the Drug Enforcement Agency.
Several Metro Council members reached by Daily Report today had not yet reviewed the proposal from the Parish Attorney. Jim Llorens, Broome’s interim chief administrative officer, says the mayor learned of the effort today and has not made a decision on whether she supports it. If the Metro Council passes the measure, Broome must sign a contract if she decides to move forward with it.
Parish Attorney Lea Anne Batson says the city-parish would contract with Baron & Budd, much like the dozens of other municipalities and counties who have filed such lawsuits, because the matter is specialized and the city-parish doesn’t have the expertise. Batson likened the move to the tobacco litigation or asbestos lawsuits in years past.
LeBlanc says the lawsuits ask for damages based on drug treatment, counseling, rehabilitation services, medical care, criminal justice and education, among other things.
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Dem candidate for Binghamton Mayor Abdelazim announces plan to combat opioid addiction
Sep 7, 2017 | Binghamton Homepage
Democratic candidate for Binghamton Mayor Tarik Abdelazim is promising concrete actions to address our region's heroin epidemic if elected in November.
Abdelazim held a news conference at the Peacemaker's Stage Thursday to outline his plan to combat opioid addiction.
First, he proposes spending $200,000 in federal block grant money on public education and outreach programs as well as drug-free supportive housing for people in recovery.
Second, he suggests signing on as a party to Broome County's current lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies.
And third, he would lend his support to an effort to open a drug treatment facility in a vacant portion of the Broome Developmental Center.
"For those who have struggled with this addiction, I stand with you. For those who have lost loved ones to this addiction, I stand with you. And for those who are showing urgency and compassion and teamwork, I hope to stand with you come January 1st," said Abdelazim.
Abdelazim faces Republican incumbent Rich David in November's election.
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Abdelazim wants city to join county opioid lawsuit, fund drug-free housing
Sep 7, 2017 | Press & Sun Bulletin
By Hannah Schwarz
Tarik Abdelazim, Democratic candidate for Binghamton mayor, Thursday called on the city to join the county's lawsuit against opioid manufacturers and commit a minimum of $200,000 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to outreach programs and drug-free housing.
Abdelazim also said he'd call on local leaders to "stand together and issue a strong public statement" in support of bringing an addiction treatment facility to the former Broome Developmental Center, but offered few details on what drug-free housing would mean, or what the city would get from joining the county's lawsuit.
"This lawsuit is about the extra costs jurisdictions incur because of the opiate addiction epidemic, and there's no question the City's public safety resources have been diverted significantly to deal with this public health crisis," he said.
If the county won the suit or settled, it would be able to transfer money to the city if it wanted, regardless of whether the city was involved in the suit.
Abdelazim did not talk about the specifics of creating drug-free housing in the city, but said it would help keep individuals who had struggled with addiction away from opportunities to relapse.
Binghamton Mayor Richard David, Abdelazim's Republican opponent, called Abdelazim's lack of policy detail in the announcement troubling, and wondered why, as the city's former director of housing, planning and community development, Abdelazim hadn't pursued those policies.
"What are the specifics on this? How much money are you talking about? What are you going to cut? What are you not going to do?" David said in an interview Thursday.
The Binghamton Police Department didn't start carrying naloxone, the drug that can keep opioid overdoses from becoming fatal, until March 2014, a fact David said showed the previous administration, which included Abdelazim, had paid little attention to the issue.
Last year in Broome County, 76 people died from overdoses, according to data from the District Attorney's Office. In 90 percent of those cases, opioids were involved. As of March 31 of this year, 14 people had died of opioid overdoses in the county.
DA: 76 drug overdose deaths in Broome County in 2016
Broome DA: Opioid overdoses have killed 14 this year
County's overdose database will be used to issue public health alerts
In July, the county announced it would start to track opioid and heroin overdoses, both fatal and non-fatal, using a federal database operated by the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Program (HIDTA).
The county said the database would be used to issue public health alerts to the community in cases where a pattern of overdoses makes officials suspicious of a laced batch.
Broome had previously tracked overdoses using coroner's reports, a source of information the District Attorney said the county will continue to use.
In February, the county announced it was suing multiple opioid manufacturers for engaging in "deceptive acts and practices" and not fully disclosing the addictive properties of opioids.
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Mora County sues opioid manufacturers
Sep 8, 2017 | Las Vegas Optic
By Jason W. Brooks
Mora County is not the biggest place with the most resources. In fact, it's the sixth smallest county in New Mexico, both in area and population.
However, the small county has decided it has had enough of a enormous problem and is trying to take the lead in tackling it. An Albuquerque law firm, in a recent news release, claims Mora County has become the first New Mexico governmental entity to seek damages against the manufacturers and distributors of opioid pain killers.
Mora County Commission Chair Paula Garcia and fellow Commissioners George Trujillo and Alfonso Griego unanimously voted at an Aug. 14 meeting to retain the firms of Fadduol, Cluff, Hardy & Conaway, P.C., based in Albuquerque — a firm that focuses on catastrophic injury and wrongful death litigation to ensure corporate accountability — and Napoli Shkolnik, PLLC, in New York to file a lawsuit on behalf of the county.
Mora County joins numerous governmental entities nationwide already represented by Napoli Shkolnik. The lawsuit is filed against various manufacturers and distributors of prescription opiates alleges fraudulent and negligent marketing and distribution of opiates.
The lawsuit seeks damages to be paid to Mora County for costs it has incurred in combatting the opioid epidemic.
"Mora County is proud to lead the charge in New Mexico in this ground-breaking litigation," said Garcia, the Commission chair. "The opioid epidemic has caused devastation, touched virtually every citizen's life and certainly has caused the County to incur expenses and utilize resources needlessly."
Napoli Shkolnik attorney Joseph L. Ciaccio, said, in the news release, that for many years, the manufacturers and distributors of opioid pain medications have earned billions of dollars in profits flooding this country with opioids.
"These lawsuits seek to force those companies to clean up the devastation caused by these pills," Ciaccio said.
Josh Conaway of Fadduol, Cluff, Hardy & Conaway notes that the rate of opioid overdose related emergency department visits has increased dramatically in New Mexico between 2010 and 2015. With so few hospitals in most of the rural state, the likelihood of not reaching an emergency room after an overdose are great. Conaway stated that they are aware of interest on the part of other governmental entities to join in the litigation effort.
"In 2014, three out of every four drug overdose deaths involved prescription opioids or heroin," Conaway said. "Mora County has one of the highest opioid overdose rates of any New Mexico county."
Paul Napoli, also of the Napoli Shkolnik firm, calls the painkiller overdose epidemic is a classic case of putting profits before people.
"These drug companies have poisoned our communities and polluted our children," Napoli said. "Many opioid manufacturers were so intent on selling as much product as possible that they either turned a blind eye toward, or intentionally buried, reports that these drugs were highly addictive — and potentially deadly."
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Our say: County seeks legal tool to fight opioid surge (OPINION)
Sep 8, 2017 | Capital Gazette
By Editorial Board
Anne Arundel County’s Republican County Executive Steve Schuh isn’t usually grouped with Maryland’s Democratic Attorney General Brian Frosh. But the two — along with many other officials nationwide — clearly share at least one conviction: When it comes to the opioid epidemic that has nearly tripled overdose deaths in this state in the last decade, government needs to use every legal weapon at its disposal.
Last month Frosh’s office indicted 11 people for operating “pill mills.” Among them were two doctors, from Bel Air and Annapolis, accused of illegally prescribing more than a quarter-million doses of painkillers and sedatives, attracting customers from as far away as Ohio. One of them was allegedly selling drugs out of his Mercedes.
“These are outrageous cases," Frosh told The Baltimore Sun. “We hope they’re outliers. Unfortunately, the evidence in Maryland and around the country (is that) there are others like them.”
Schuh obviously agrees. On Wednesday, he announced he has hired a Washington-based law firm, Motley Rice, to investigate and potentially sue opioid manufacturers, distributors and doctors. If there is litigation — and Schuh said he expects it — it would make Anne Arundel the first Maryland county to go to court against doctors or the pharmaceutical industry.
Can this county-level effort can add much to those of Frosh and state and federal law enforcement officials? We don’t know, but as Schuh is not a reckless spender, and has been searching for any tools at hand to bring down the county’s alarmingly high number of overdose deaths, it’s easy to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Such efforts point up the uncomfortable fact that the opioid epidemic originates not from smuggling tunnels under the Mexican border but from a society in which such drugs are regularly prescribed and often not carefully controlled.
A small but telling example came last month, with the publication of a review done by Johns Hopkins University. Researchers who looked at six different studies involving 810 surgical patients concluded that two out of three didn’t use their entire opioid prescription or dispose of the pills afterwards. The unused pills can wind up sitting in medicine cabinets — or can be misused or diverted.
The United States, with 5 percent of the world’s population, consumes 98 percent of the world supply of the narcotic painkillers Oxycodone and Hydrocodone, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration. The drugs are a godsend to many, but can put some on a path to addiction that will end, fatally, with fentanyl-laced heroin.
Ultimately, we can’t simply prosecute our way out of this problem — something that Schuh acknowledges with such local efforts as the Safe Stations program. But legal action against opportunistic doctors or pharmaceutical firms may help.
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KFDA News Channel 10 Early Show at 6am
Sep 8, 2017 | KFDA (CBS)
By Amarillo, TX
Rough Transcript: new mexico is suing opiod manufacturers for fueling the state's drug addiction cris. the state's attorney general announced the filing against five of the nation's largest opioid manufacturers and three major wholesale distributors. the suit accuses opioid manufacturers of aggressively pushing highly addictive and dangerous drugs and falsely representing to doctors that patients would rarely succumb to addiction. new mexico's drug overdose death rate is far above the national average.
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WAFB 9 News This Morning at 7am
Sep 8, 2017 | WAFB (CBS)
By Baton Rouge, LA
Rough Transcript: east baton rogue parish could become part of a big lawsuit against national drug companies. our partners at the baton rouge business report say parish attorneys will suggest that our city join others suing these companies for the opioid epidemic. they are expected to recommend that we hire an outside law firm that is already involved with the lawsuit. that'll need to be approved by the metro council and then the mayor. drug companies have responded to the efforts, saying you can't blame them for doctors over-prescribing opioids.
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Sep 7, 2017 | KRQE (CBS)
By Albuquerque, NM
Rough Transcript: the state of new mexico has now filed suit against five of the nation )s largest opioid manufacturers and thre of their partner companies. state atorney general, hector balderas says they have pushed highly adictive opioids, while failing to investigate or report suspicious orders of the prescription drugs. "right now we are losin one new mexican a day, and we need to get these pharmaceutical companies aware of that." just yesterday, bernalilo county commissioners anounced they would sue the drug companies osimilar grounds.
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Sep 7, 2017 | WIVT (ABC)
By Binghamton, NY
Rough Transcript: abdelazim held a news conference at the peacemaker's stage today to outline his plan to combat opioid addiction.first, he proposes spending 200 thousand dollars in federal block grant money on public education and outreach programs as well as drug-free supportive housing for people in recovery.second, he suggests signing on as a party to broome county's current lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies.
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KOAT Action 7 News live at 6pm
Sep 7, 2017 | KOAT (ABC)
By Albuquerque, NM
Rough Transcript: the new mexico attorney general is going after big pharma. he says you've had to pay the bill when it comes to the drug cris in new mexico. shelly: as nancy laflin reports, the attorney general wants drug companies to pay up too. reporter: today the attorney general filed a lawsuit against drug companies, saying they need to help pick up e tab and pay for first responders who have to deal with drug overdoses and 8:13 PMrecovery programs in new mexico. by his side, a well known businessman who lost his daughter to a drug overdose. steve paternoster, the owner of scalo restaurant, has paid a heavy price. he buried his daughter, haley. >> losing your child, there's nothing on earth that touches that realm of grief and that realm of pain and that realm of loss. reporter: paternoster says haley got hooked on presciption pills, then turned to heroin. it's a story we've heard over and over in new mexico. and we've told you how paternoster is trying to help addicts, so no other parents have to bury their children. now he has an important ally in his fight. >> i'm declaring a state of emergency. reporter: today new mexico attorney general hecr balderas said he's suing drug companies, to get them to help pay for what he says is a drug cris in new mexico. >> on avage, we're losing one new mexican every day due to overdo. reporter: the ag says it's been devasting for families. and expensive for taxpayers. now he wants big drug companies 8:14 PMwho sell opioids to chip in too. >> those profits have to be t aside in treatment, first responders, law enforcement, so that we can continue to deal with this epidemic. reporter: steve paternoster says he can't bring his daughter haley back, but he hopes this lawsuit keeps other parents from going through, what he did. >> they're dangerous drugs and people are over using them. doctors are over prescribing them it's a problem that's had to be addressed and it's high time. reporter: the a.g. is naming drug manfacturers and drug distributors in that lawsuit. he also started a task called project open, and he wants to hear from families who lost loved ones to drug a drug overdose. doug: this comes as bernalillo county plans to sue opioid manufacturers over marketing practices. officials say those practices have led to soaring numbers of overdoses.
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Sep 7, 2017 | WSIL (ABC)
By Paducah, KY
Rough Transcript: the williamson county state s attorney wants to combat opioid addiction in southern illinois... by rolling out new pre-trial diversion programs . brandon zanotti says his office will look through all opioid possession charges... and on a case-by-case basis... send people to treatment programs for their addiction... he says if the treatment succeeds... it could lead to dropped or reduced charges. zanotti says the county will also prepare a lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies that make opioids... over their aggressive marketing techniques. i think because other aggressive and corrupt marketing techniques, i think we have a lot of good people who are opioid addicts ) zanotti says it will take a community effort... not just law enforcement and medical professionals ... to combat the cris
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Sep 7, 2017 | KFOX (FOX)
By El Paso, TX
Rough Transcript: new mexico attorney general is filing a lawsuit against the country's biggest opioid manufactures and distributors. this is the first step in holding companies responsible. he says companies can put profits over people. the lawsuit alleges that the drug manufacture downplayed the risk of prescription to opioids.
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Sep 7, 2017 | KOB (NBC)
By Albuquerque, NM
Rough Transcript: new mexico attorney general hector balderas is joing the fight against the opioid epidemic in our state the a-g's office has filed a lawsuit against the country's largest manufacturers and distributors of prescription opioid medication. balderas is accusing the companies of fueling the state's drug addiction problem by pushing highly addictive drugs. just yesterday... bernalillo county commissioners voted to pursue a similar lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies.
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Sep 7, 2017 | KVIA (ABC)
By El Paso, TX
Rough Transcript: new mexico is filing a lawsuit against manufacturers and distributors of prescription opioid medication. the state's attorney general's office is accusing them of exacerbating the state's drug addiction crisis. new mexico's drug overdose death rate is far above the national average. the suit accuses opioid manufacturers of aggressively pushing highly addictive and dangerous drugs. the suit also accuses distributors of failing to monitor, investigate and report suspicious orders of prescription opiates.
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Sep 7, 2017 | WBFF (Fox)
By Baltimore, MD
Rough Transcript: some startling findings in a study on long term opioid use in the country. joy lepola takes a closer look at the epidemic and the factors 4:34 PMblamed for it. >> reporter: it is estimated this country's opioid epidemic is killing nearly 100 people a day. some from prescription opioids, some from illegal drugs. a new study from the johns hopkins bloomberg school of public health found opioid prescriptions increased significantly. between 1999 and 2014 as much of that increase involved patients who had been taking their medication for 90 days or longer, a finding that concerns some local leaders. anne arundel county executive steve shoe. >> we believe 80% of heroin, opioid addicts in anne arundel county started with a legitimate prescription. >> reporter: he said the highly addictive painkillers have become a gate way to heroin use in his county, which has been one of the hardest hit in maryland by the opioid epidemic. >> we're now experiencing not one overdose a day, but three. not one fatality a week, but two and a half. >> as of yesterday the county had 740 overdose, of which 96 were fatal. >> reporter: researchers found between 1999 and 2000 most patients did not use prescribed opioids beyond 90 days. but by 2013/2014, a majority of patients, more than 70%, had prescriptions for painkillers beyond 90 days. >> prescription drugs have played a devious role in this crisis. >> reporter: that's led anne arundel county to form a lawsuit against the manufacturers and distributors of the highly addictive painkillers. >> our primary goal is to stop this crisis. to stop overprescribing. >> reporter: within the past year, at least 25 states, cities and counties have filed civil cases against manufacturers, distributors and even large drug store chains. it's estimated the opioid industry generates roughly $13 billion a year.
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