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opioid Litigation Daily Media Report - 1/8/18

Midwest (IA, IL, WI)

36 Iowa counties file lawsuit against drug companies over opioid epidemic
Jan 5, 2018 | KCRG (IA)
By Staff

Three dozen counties across Iowa are trying to stop the spread of opioid addiction at the root. These counties filed lawsuits Friday against drug companies for their marketing of opioids.
36 Iowa counties file lawsuits against opioid manufacturers
Jan 8, 2018 | Des Moines Register (IA)
By Kim Norvell

Thirty-six Iowa counties, including Polk and Dallas, filed federal lawsuits Friday against the manufacturers of pharmaceutical opioid drugs.
County part of state lawsuit
Jan 8, 2018 | LeMars Daily Sentinel (IA)
By Staff

Plymouth County is one of several Iowa counties filing suit against pharmaceutical companies over what is claimed to be “aggressive and fraudulent marketing of prescription opioid painkillers that has led to a drug epidemic in the state and throughout the nation.”
Winnebago County sues drug-makers as opioid deaths hit all-time high
Jan 5, 2018 | Oshkosh Northwestern (WI)
By Nate Beck

As Winnebago County is on pace to see the highest-ever number of opioid deaths in 2017, it is joining a lawsuit that pins blame for the festering crisis on drug-makers.
Local counties join opioid lawsuit
Jan 5, 2018 | WBAY (WI)
By Staff

Twelve more Wisconsin counties have filed suit against drug companies over the opioid epidemic.

Southeast (NC, AR, AL, LA)

NC Cherokee Tribe Latest To File Opioid Marketing Suit
Jan 5, 2018 | Law360
By Dani Kass

North Carolina's Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians on Thursday joined the mass of groups accusing opioid makers and distributors of deceptively marketing the painkillers as safe for long-term use and creating the nation’s opioid crisis.
County will consider joining opioid suit
Jan 8, 2018 | Greenville Daily Reflector (NC)
By Ginger Livingston

The Pitt County Board of Commissioners on Monday is set to consider a recommendation that the county join a lawsuit seeking damages from several drug companies for the ongoing opioid epidemic.
MH considering joining opioid lawsuit
Jan 5, 2018 | The Baxter Bulletin (AR)
By Scott Liles

The Mountain Home City Council will take a couple weeks to review a proposal for the city to join an effort to sue the manufacturers and distributors of opioid drugs, council members agreed Thursday night.
Commission joins lawsuit against opioid manufacturers
Jan 8, 2018 | Daily Mountain Eagle (AL)
By Ed Howell

The Walker County Commission voted Thursday 3-0 to join a class action lawsuit against opioid manufacturers and distributors.
Shreveport and Arklatex counties join lawsuit against opioid industry
Jan 5, 2018 | KTBS (LA)
By Staff

Bowie and Harrison Counties in Texas, Miller County in Arkansas, and the city of Shreveport have all joined a class action lawsuit of more than 200 cites and counties. The hope is to reduce the abuse of opioid painkillers. They are suing the makers and distributors of the drugs.
County may file lawsuit over opioids
Jan 5, 2018 | Wilkes County Journal Patriot
By Jule Hubbard

The Wilkes County commissioners are considering seeking financial compensation for the county’s costs from opioid addiction by filing a federal lawsuit against certain prescription drug manufacturers and distributors.

Northeast (NY, MD)

Oswego County sues drug companies, doctors over opioid marketing
Jan 7, 2018 | Watertown Daily Times (NY)
By Staff

Oswego County is suing pharmaceutical companies and doctors concerning the marketing of opioids.
Putnam Joins Suit Against Big Pharma Over Opioids
Jan 8, 2018 | Southeast Patch (NY)
By Lanning Taliaferro

Putnam County has joined the New York Opioid Cost Recovery litigation. The lawsuit is against the pharmaceutical companies and distributors for fraudulent and negligent practices they engaged in, which caused immeasurable harm to residents and taxpayers.
Baltimore County To Sue Pharmaceutical Companies Over Opioid Distribution
Jan 8, 2018 | WBAL (MD)
By Staff

Baltimore County intends to file a federal lawsuit against some pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors of opioids, executive Kevin Kamenetz says.
Albany County files federal lawsuit against big pharma
Jan 5, 2018 | Times Union (NY)
By Amanda Fries

Albany County on Friday filed a federal lawsuit against against several national pharmaceutical manufacturers for their role in the opioid epidemic.
Oswego County sues drug companies over opioid epidemic
Jan 5, 2018 | Syracuse.com (NY)
By James T. Mulder

Oswego County is suing pharmaceutical companies and doctors for aggressively and fraudulently marketing prescription opioid painkillers that has led to a drug epidemic in the county and nationwide.

Southwest (TX)

Wichita Co. latest to join federal opioid lawsuit
Jan 5, 2018 | RNN Texoma (TX)
By Alex Achten

Wichita County is finalizing a deal with the Altman Law Firm to represent the county in a lawsuit against big pharmaceutical companies and the opioid epidemic.

Commentary and FYIs

America's Opioid Crisis Looks a Lot Like Big Tobacco Spats of Yesteryear
Jan 7, 2018 | The Street
By Bill Meagher

While the opioid crisis has made headlines across the country little's been done at a federal level that could truely make a dent in the nation-wide epidemic. And thus, the industry has widely ignored the issue, paying nominal fines along the way and placating consumers with statements about their willingness to address the issue.
Connelly: AG reveals how big drug maker markets its opioids
Jan 5, 2018 | SeattlePi (WA)
By Joel Connelly

The manufacturer of OxyContin has pledged to "redouble" its efforts against illegal abuse of the opioid drug, but unsealed documents tell a far different story of how Purdue Pharma aggressively promoted use of the drug in Washington state.
Suing wholesalers won't help Tennessee solve opioid crisis (EDITORIAL)
Jan 8, 2018 | Knox News (TN)
By Drew Johnson

We do not need to review statistics to tell us we have too many opioid overdose deaths in Tennessee or that families and communities are suffering from opioid dependency. The crisis is real. But frivolous lawsuits are not the answer.
Opioid lawsuits about greed (LETTER TO THE EDITOR)
Jan 8, 2018 | The Columbus Dispatch (OH)
By John Meekins

Seeing that Franklin County commissioners are seeking to join the city of Columbus and others in existing lawsuits blaming the greed of drug manufacturers and distributors for the opioid crisis (“County expected to join suit on opioids,” Friday Dispatch article), all I can think of is “Monkey see, monkey do.”
Pharmaceutical companies are not to blame for the opioid crisis (LETTER TO THE EDITOR)
Jan 8, 2018 | Rockford Register Star (IL)
By Charles Pagels

I find it interesting that the Winnebago County board and the Rockford City Council are becoming parties to a lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies to combat the opioid crisis. Maybe I missed the point of the lawsuit? Pharmaceutical companies are manufacturing legal medications that are ordered and sold legally to pharmacies. What have the pharmaceutical companies done that is unlawful or has directly contributed to the opioid crisis?
AmerisourceBergen Foundation Launches Municipal Support Program to Help Combat Opioid Abuse (Press Release)
Jan 5, 2018 | AmerisourceBergen

The AmerisourceBergen Foundation today announced the launch of a municipal support program that aims to promote the safe disposal of opioids by providing communities nationwide with resources to deactivate expired or unused prescription medications.

Broadcast Media Coverage

9 On Your Side Morning Edition II
Jan 8, 2018 | WNCT (CBS)
By Greenville, NC

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796222?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
Good Morning Carolina
Jan 8, 2018 | WWAY (ABC)
By Wilmington, NC

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796226?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
KCRG-TV9 Saturday Morning News at 8
Jan 8, 2018 | KCRG (ABC)
By Cedar Rapids, IA

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796256?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
KETV Newswatch 7 First News Saturday
Jan 6, 2018 | KETV (ABC)
By Omaha, NE

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796263?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
News10 at 7am
Jan 6, 2018 | WTEN (ABC)
By Albany, NY

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796267?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
News 4 at 5a Saturday
Jan 6, 2018 | WSMV (NBC)
By Nashville, TN

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796278?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
News 12
Jan 5, 2018 | WAGT (NBC)
By August, GA

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796284?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
Spectrum News All Evening
Jan 5, 2018 | Spectrum News
By Albany, NY

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796298?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5

Midwest (IA, IL, WI)

36 Iowa counties file lawsuit against drug companies over opioid epidemic

Jan 5, 2018 | KCRG (IA)

By Staff

Three dozen counties across Iowa are trying to stop the spread of opioid addiction at the root. These counties filed lawsuits Friday against drug companies for their marketing of opioids.
The lawsuits say companies, including Johnson & Johnson, have promoted that the benefits of prescription opioids outweigh the risks. These are the first filings in federal court against pharmaceutical manufacturers that address the opioid crisis.
"The results of the drug manufacturers' conduct is no different than the results caused by the street dealer," John Sarcone, Polk County Attorney said.
The counties included in this lawsuit are Adair, Adams, Audubon, Benton, Bremer, Buchanan, Buena Vista, Calhoun, Carroll, Cedar, Clay, Clayton, Clinton, Dallas, Delaware, Fayette, Hamilton, Hardin, Humboldt, Johnson, Lee, Mahaska, Marion, Mitchell, Monroe, Montgomery, O’Brien, Plymouth, Polk, Pottawattamie, Sac, Scott, Shelby, Sioux, Taylor and Winneshiek. It's of note that Linn County is not on that list.
The lawsuits say prescription opioid deaths in Iowa have quadrupled in the last 20 years. Also, it says opioid-related emergency room visits have tripled over the last decade, and the opioid crisis has put a financial strain on Iowans because of excessive opioid prescriptions that lead to addiction.

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36 Iowa counties file lawsuits against opioid manufacturers

Jan 8, 2018 | Des Moines Register (IA)

By Kim Norvell

Thirty-six Iowa counties, including Polk and Dallas, filed federal lawsuits Friday against the manufacturers of pharmaceutical opioid drugs.
These are the first lawsuits of their kind in Iowa. States across the country have filed similar lawsuits in an attempt to hold pharmaceutical companies responsible for the nation's widespread opioid epidemic.
It identifies five pharmaceutical companies, their subsidiaries and three physicians for allegedly downplaying the risks of opioids, aggressively marketing opioid use to physicians to treat chronic pain and failing to report or investigate "suspicious orders of prescription opiates."
"Polk County and other counties in this state have been negatively affected by the opioid crisis perpetrated by drug manufacturers who have preyed upon our citizens through the use of sophisticated and deceptive marketing practices," Polk County Attorney John Sarcone said in a news release. " ... The results of the drug manufacturers' conduct is no different than the results caused by the street dealer, and they need to be held accountable and punished for their reprehensible behavior."
According to the lawsuits, prescription opioid deaths in Iowa have quadrupled in 20 years, making it only one of four states with such a dramatic increase. Polk County alone made up 25 percent of those deaths.
The lawsuits identify 646 opioid-related deaths in Iowa between 2009 and 2014.
Prescription and illicit opioids are the main drivers of drug overdose deaths nationwide. According to the Centers for Disease Control, opioids contributed to 33,091 deaths in 2015. President Donald Trump declared the opioid crisis a public health emergency in October.
Iowa counties, represented by the Wisconsin-based law firm Crueger Dickinson and the Illinois-based firm Simmons Hanly Conroy, are seeking to recoup costs associated with the opioid epidemic, including in law enforcement, incarceration, rehabilitation, autopsies and emergency medical services.
The lawsuits were filed about two months after the Iowa State Association of Counties unanimously passed a resolution encouraging its member counties "to immediately support" the litigation.
Counties that filed suits in Iowa were Adair, Adams, Audubon, Benton, Bremer, Buchanan, Buena Vista, Calhoun, Carroll, Cedar, Clay, Clayton, Clinton, Dallas, Delaware, Fayette, Hamilton, Hardin, Humboldt, Johnson, Lee, Mahaska, Marion, Mitchell, Monroe, Montgomery, O’Brien, Plymouth, Polk, Pottawattamie, Sac, Scott, Shelby, Sioux, Taylor and Winneshiek.
There are no out-of-pocket costs to Iowa counties that join the litigation. Lawyers will be awarded a portion of the settlement, should the lawsuits be successful.
The Iowa lawsuits follow similar, ongoing actions filed by Crueger Dickinson and Simmons Hanly Conroy on behalf of counties across the country. In addition to Iowa, Simmons Hanly Conroy has filed similar lawsuits in New York, Louisiana, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Illinois and Wisconsin.

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County part of state lawsuit

Jan 8, 2018 | LeMars Daily Sentinel (IA)

By Staff

Plymouth County is one of several Iowa counties filing suit against pharmaceutical companies over what is claimed to be “aggressive and fraudulent marketing of prescription opioid painkillers that has led to a drug epidemic in the state and throughout the nation.”
Crueger Dickinson LLC, a Wisconsin law firm focused on high-stakes litigation, and Simmons Hanly Conroy, one of the nation’s largest law firms focused on consumer protection and mass tort actions, together filed the first lawsuits Friday on behalf of Polk County, and 35 other Iowa counties.
Counties filing suit in Iowa are: Adair, Adams, Audubon, Benton, Bremer, Buchanan, Buena Vista, Calhoun, Carroll, Cedar, Clay, Clayton, Clinton, Dallas, Delaware, Fayette, Hamilton, Hardin, Humboldt, Johnson, Lee, Mahaska, Marion, Mitchell, Monroe, Montgomery, O’Brien, Plymouth, Polk, Pottawattamie, Sac, Scott, Shelby, Sioux, Taylor and Winneshiek.
Friday’s filings are the first in Iowa federal court against pharmaceutical manufacturers to address the opioid crisis.
The defendants in the lawsuits are: Purdue Pharma L.P.; Purdue Pharma, Inc.; The Purdue Frederick Company, Inc.; Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc.; Cephalon, Inc.; Johnson& Johnson; Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Janssen Pharmaceutica, Inc.; Endo Health Solutions, Inc.; Endo Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Dr. Perry Fine; Dr. Scott Fishman; and Dr. Lynn Webster.
“Communities throughout Iowa are suffering as a result of the opioid epidemic,” said Erin Dickinson of Crueger Dickinson LLC, lead counsel along with partner Charles Crueger in the lawsuits. “The lawsuits filed today, the first in Iowa, are an important step toward holding those responsible for causing the worst drug epidemic we’ve ever seen. Together, with Simmons Hanly Conroy, we will work to get justice for the people of Iowa who have suffered unimaginable losses.”
“We applaud these counties for taking this important first step to hold accountable this who have devastated their communities,” said Simmons Hanly Conroy Shareholder Paul Hanly, lead co-counsel in the case. “We are proud to stand with Erin and Charles as they seek justice for these counties and their residents.”
“Polk County and other counties in this state have been negatively affected by the opioid crisis perpetrated by drug manufacturers who have preyed upon our citizens through the use of sophisticated and deceptive marketing practices,” said John P. Sarcone, Polk County Attorney. “The human toll has been great, not only to those who suffer from addiction but also to their families who have to deal with a myriad of problems related to their loved ones’ addictions. Our communities suffer with the increase in criminal activity and the increase in children who are in need of assistance because of their parent’s conduct not to mention the financial damages incurred as a result of the costs of substance abuse and mental health commitments and the tremendous costs in trying to break the addiction cycle. The results of the drug manufacturers’ conduct is no different than the results caused by the street dealer, and they need to be held accountable and punished for their reprehensible behavior.”
On Jan. 4, Hanly was appointed by a federal judge to be co-lead counsel overseeing all the federal litigation brought against pharmaceutical companies and physicians involved in the marketing of prescription opioid painkillers. Hanly, with extensive experience in litigation against opioid manufacturers going back more than a decade, will work with his co-lead counsels to manage the federal lawsuits brought by nearly 100 other law firms representing plaintiffs in more than 200 docketed opioid cases. Additionally, Dickinson was named to the Plaintiffs’ Executive Committee, a committee of 16 attorneys who will play a major role in the leadership and management of all of the federal cases in the United States.
According to the lawsuits, prescription opioid deaths in Iowa have quadrupled in the past 20 years. Rates of prescription opioid overdose deaths since 1999 in Iowa have increased, making it only one of four states with such a dramatic increase. Polk County alone made up 25 percent of those deaths.
The majority of opioid-related deaths in Iowa involved prescription opioids, with there being at least 646 such deaths between 2009 and 2014. In Iowa, opioid related emergency room visits have tripled over the last decade. In 2006 there were only 519 such encounters, whereas there were 1,555 in 2014.
The lawsuits allege the defendants sought to create a false perception in the minds of physicians, patients, health care providers and health care payors that using opioids to treat chronic pain was safe for most patients and that the drugs’ benefits outweighed the risks. This was allegedly perpetrated through a civil conspiracy involving a coordinated, sophisticated and highly deceptive promotion and marketing campaign that began in the late 1990s, became more aggressive around 2006, and is ongoing.
Specifically, the complaints detail how the defendants allegedly poured significant financial resources into generating articles, continuing medical education courses and other “educational” materials, conducting sales visits to doctors, and supporting a network of professional societies and advocacy groups — all of which were successful in the intended purpose of creating a new and phony “consensus” supporting the long-term use of opioids.
The Iowa lawsuits follow similar, ongoing actions filed by Crueger Dickinson and Simmons Hanly Conroy on behalf of counties across the country. In addition to Iowa, Simmons has also filed similar lawsuits in New York, Louisiana, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Illinois and Wisconsin.

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Winnebago County sues drug-makers as opioid deaths hit all-time high

Jan 5, 2018 | Oshkosh Northwestern (WI)

By Nate Beck

As Winnebago County is on pace to see the highest-ever number of opioid deaths in 2017, it is joining a lawsuit that pins blame for the festering crisis on drug-makers.
Winnebago County Coroner Barry Busby said there were likely more than 30 overdose deaths in Winnebago County last year, which is the most ever recorded. His office, however, is still waiting on toxicology reports and won't have final numbers for a couple months.
"The number of deaths aren’t going down yet," Busby said. "We have a problem. The problem is addiction can happen to every part of society. It can be attorneys' sons, doctors sons', blue-collar people. It can be people that have good, plain families."
Meanwhile, Winnebago County has joined 11 other counties — among them Brown, Outagamie and Portage — in a lawsuit against a class of pharmaceutical companies. The counties hope to recover money to offset rising costs of health care, law enforcement and other services needed to fight the epidemic.
The counties claim that drug companies flooded patients with dangerous prescription opioids, in a "nefarious" effort to boost sales, according to a complaint filed Friday.
"Defendants knew, however, that their opioid products were addictive, subject to abuse, and not safe or efficacious for long-term use," according to the lawsuit.
Winnebago County, according to the lawsuit, had 48 deaths from opioids between 2013 and 2015. Adjusted for population, Winnebago County saw more opioid deaths than Brown and Outagamie Counties, which both have larger populations. At least 478 people died between 2013 and 2016 in the 12 counties suing drug companies.
Busby said opioid deaths have grown sixfold from 20 years ago in Winnebago County. Opioid use grew in Wisconsin, he said, with easily available prescription medication. When doctors began to reign in how many drugs they were prescribing, the prevalence of heroin increased along with "designer" drugs like fentanyl, which is 50 times more powerful than heroin.
Defendants named in the suit are: Purdue Pharma L.P.; Purdue Pharma Inc.; The Purdue Frederick Co. Inc.; Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc.; Cephalon Inc.; Johnson & Johnson; Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc.; Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc.; Janssen Pharmaceutica Inc.; Endo Health Solutions Inc.; Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc.; and physicians Perry Fine of Utah, Scott Fishman of California and Lynn Webster of Utah.
Purdue Pharma is the maker of OxyContin and Dilaudid. Endo Pharmaceuticals is the maker of Percocet and Percodan. Janssen Pharmaceuticals makes a fentanyl skin patch. Cephalon makes a fentanyl lozenge.
Lawyers from Whitefish Bay firm Crueger Dickinson and Illinois firm Simmons Hanly Conroy are representing the counties in the lawsuit. Drug companies have not yet registered attorneys in the case, court files show.

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Local counties join opioid lawsuit

Jan 5, 2018 | WBAY (WI)

By Staff

Twelve more Wisconsin counties have filed suit against drug companies over the opioid epidemic.
Brown, Crawford, Iron, Juneau, Kewaunee, Outagamie, Ozaukee, Pepin, Portage, Racine, Richland and Winnebago are the latest counties to file complaints against drug manufacturers.
A total of 60 counties in Wisconsin have now filed suit.
The lawsuits target pharmaceutical companies for what the plaintiffs claim is "aggressive and fraudulent marketing" of prescription painkillers.
The suits say this marketing has created an opioid epidemic in the United States by convincing doctors and patients that the painkillers were safe for most patients.
“Opioid addiction has destroyed the lives of many people throughout our community,” said Troy Streckenbach, Brown County Executive. “This has not only come at a cost to victims and families, but also to taxpayers who have been forced to pay for the damage this epidemic has inflicted.”
The counties claim opioids have taken a toll on human life and caused financial strain for social services, law enforcement, and court services.
Crueger Dickinson LLC and Simmons Hanley Conroy filed the suits on behalf of the Wisconsin counties.

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Southeast (NC, AR, AL, LA)

NC Cherokee Tribe Latest To File Opioid Marketing Suit

Jan 5, 2018 | Law360

By Dani Kass

North Carolina's Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians on Thursday joined the mass of groups accusing opioid makers and distributors of deceptively marketing the painkillers as safe for long-term use and creating the nation’s opioid crisis.
The tribe's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act suit in North Carolina federal court says the manufacturers intentionally and unlawfully got the nation hooked on opioids by lying about how addictive they were and that suppliers failed to properly catch suspicious orders of opioids.

While more than 200 suits have been filed over these allegations, which have since been consolidated into multidistrict litigation, this is one of the first brought by a Native American tribe. Among those few examples, the Cherokee Nation has filed a similar suit in tribal court, which may get moved to federal court, and the St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin tribe has sued in Wisconsin federal court.

EBCI is suing drugmakers Purdue Pharma Inc.; Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. and its unit Cephalon Inc.; Johnson & Johnson and its unit Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc.; Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc.; Allergan PLC and its unit Watson Laboratories Inc.; and Mallinckrodt PLC, along with distributors McKesson Corp., Cardinal Health Inc. and AmerisourceBergen Corp. Various subsidiaries were also named.

Between 1999 and 2016, about 12,000 people in North Carolina died from opioid overdoses, the tribe — which has about 16,000 members — said. EBCI said it has spent significant money dealing with the crisis, including paying for medical care, treatments for addiction and addiction-related disease, rehabilitation, treatment for infants born with complications from opioids, law enforcement and caring for children whose parents struggle with addiction.

Notably, between 2001 and 2012, the number of Native Americans in the area who had drug-related issues jumped 38 percent, and the Cherokee Indian Hospital Pharmacy had to start providing free doses of naloxone, a drug that reverses overdoses, the complaint states.

“Plaintiff has declared, inter alia, that opioid abuse, addiction, morbidity and mortality have created a serious public health and safety crisis in EBCI tribal lands, are a public nuisance, and that diversion of legally-produced controlled substances into the illicit market causes or contributes to this public nuisance,” the suit says.

Some of these companies have already had to pay up for related allegations: Purdue in 2007 paid $600 million and admitted to downplaying the addiction risks of its flagship product, OxyContin. Last year, McKesson paid a $150 million penalty for allegedly failing to report suspicious opioid orders.

In statements used across the various opioid marketing suits, the drugmakers denied wrongdoing and stressed that they're dedicated to fighting the opioid crisis, while the suppliers stressed their role as middlemen.

The Healthcare Distribution Alliance, on behalf of McKesson, Cardinal Health and AmerisourceBergen, emphasized that the companies simply get drugs from manufacturers to providers.

"Given our role, the idea that distributors are solely responsible for the number of opioid prescriptions written defies common sense and lacks understanding of how the pharmaceutical supply chain actually works and how it is regulated," HDA senior vice president John Parker said in a statement.

Purdue said, “We are deeply troubled by the opioid crisis and we are dedicated to being part of the solution. We vigorously deny these allegations and look forward to the opportunity to present our defense."

Allergan stressed that it has a small role in the opioid market, saying: "Allergan has a history of supporting — and continues to support — the safe, responsible use of prescription medications. This includes opioid medications, which when sold, prescribed and used responsibly, play an appropriate role in pain relief for millions of Americans." It noted that all of its generic opioids are now under Teva’s ownership.

Teva said it “denies having engaged in any conduct that would give rise to liability with respect to this lawsuit.”

Janssen said, "We believe the allegations in lawsuits against our company are both legally and factually unfounded. Janssen has acted in the best interests of patients and physicians with regard to its opioid pain medicines, which are FDA-approved and carry FDA-mandated warnings about possible risks on every product label."

Lastly, Endo pointed to its safety efforts, including pulling one of its drugs off the market at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s urging, and said, “We deny the allegations contained in this lawsuit and intend to vigorously defend the company.”

Mallinckrodt and an attorney for the tribe didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment Friday.

EBCI is represented by Jason Scott Taylor of Scott Taylor PLLC, Michael J. Fuller Jr. of McHugh Fuller Law Group PLLC, Paul T. Farrell Jr. of Greene Ketchum Farrell Bailey & Tweel LLP, James C. Peterson of Hill Peterson Carper Bee & Deitzler PLLC, Peter J. Mougey of Levin Papantonio Thomas, Mitchell Rafferty & Proctor PA, J. Burton LeBlanc IV of Baron & Budd PC and Anthony J. Majestro of Powell & Majestro PLLC.

Counsel information for the defendants was not immediately available.

The case is Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians v. AmerisourceBergen Drug Corporation et al, case number 1:18-cv-00004, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina.

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County will consider joining opioid suit

Jan 8, 2018 | Greenville Daily Reflector (NC)

By Ginger Livingston

The Pitt County Board of Commissioners on Monday is set to consider a recommendation that the county join a lawsuit seeking damages from several drug companies for the ongoing opioid epidemic.
The law firm McHugh Fuller Law Group of Hattiesburg, Miss., is the lead counsel and is being joined by seven other firms in the suit, including Ward and Smith of Greenville. Five other counties in North Carolina have joined the suit.
The meeting is set for noon in the commissioners board room at the Pitt County Office Building, 1717 W. Fifth St. The meeting was been delayed from its scheduled 9 a.m. start because of icy road conditions.
According to a report to the board, there is a contingency fee of 30 percent of the gross recovery, plus litigation expenses if the suit is successfull. There will be no fee or reimbursement of expenses if there is no recovery.
The suit alleges that multiple manufacturers and wholesale distributors of opioids have played a role in the diversion of millions of prescription opiates into the illicit market. The result is “opioid addiction, abuse, morbidity and mortality.”
As of last week Yadkin, Buncombe, New Hanover, Surry and Rockingham counties have signed on to the suit. The complaint has already been filed in Asheville on behalf of Buncombe County.
Also on Monday’s agenda:
• Vidant Health will provide an update and annual audit report.
• Trillium Health Resources will provide an annual report.
• A public hearing will be held as part of the final procedure for confirming the assessment roll for the Woodmoor subdivision road improvement project. Once that roll is confirmed the tax collection will publish is.
Last year the county spent $106,627 to repair Woodmoor Drive and a portion of Trails End so it could be adopted into the state road system. The money was spent because the majority of property owners agreed to repay the county. The assessment will be either a one-time payment of $5,077.51 or an annual payment of $507.75 over a 10-year period.
• A public hearing on a request to rezone 2.96 acres of property on Barrus Construction Road, south of its intersection with N.C. 33. DPD Properties II wants the rezoning changed from rural residential to general industrial, as a conditional district so it can allow a debris washout area for the concrete plant located on the property. The county planning board unanimously approved the request.
• A report on the progress Southern Land and Timber has made in complying with the conditions set by commissioners in August to receive a conditional use permit expanding the area it could mine.
Planning staff is scheduled to report that while the company made “significant progress” restoring areas that were accidently excavated, the work isn’t complete and the mine is not in compliance with the requirements of the conditional use permit and the zoning ordinance.
• A review of a draft ordinance regulating drones and other unmanned aircraft systems and a discussion about setting a Feb. 19 public hearing on its adoption.
A request to purchase four radio amphlifers to boost signals received at found fire stations as part of the upgrade of Pitt County’s emergency radio and paging system.
The equipment and installation will cost $115,024 and the commissioners must approve the appropriation of $104,385 from a contingency fund to do the work.

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MH considering joining opioid lawsuit

Jan 5, 2018 | The Baxter Bulletin (AR)

By Scott Liles

The Mountain Home City Council will take a couple weeks to review a proposal for the city to join an effort to sue the manufacturers and distributors of opioid drugs, council members agreed Thursday night.
Mark Hayes, general counsel for the Arkansas Municipal League, told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that as of Tuesday almost 60 cities had agreed to participate in a class-action lawsuit against several pharmaceutical companies.
“I expect that number to grow substantially over the next several weeks,” Hayes told the Little Rock paper in its Wednesday edition. “There will be many city council/board meetings in early January, and our winter conference will have city officials in attendance from all over the state.”
The Municipal League is working with the Arkansas Association of Counties and a shared team of lawyers to represent local governments in lawsuits about the damage caused by opioid addictions.
Baxter County Judge Mickey Pendergrass said Friday that the county had signed up in December to have the AAC represent the county in any opioid lawsuits.
Roughly 100 lawsuits against about 70 opioid companies have already been filed nationally by either cities, counties or states, the Democrat-Gazette reported. The pending cases against opioid manufacturers and distributors have been compared to the lawsuits against tobacco companies in the 1990s.
Legal expenses for both the AML’s and the AAC’s lawsuits will be paid out of the cases’ legal settlements; the lawsuits will not cost the enjoining cities and counties any additional expense.
After a brief discussion on the AML’s proposal to join its lawsuit, Mountain Home council members agreed to revisit the topic at its next meeting. The Council will hold its second January meeting on Thursday, Jan. 18, at 6 p.m. at City Hall.
The AML’s proposed litigation identifies 16 opioid manufacturers or distributors as potential targets: Purdue Pharma LP; Purdue Pharma Inc.; The Purdue Frederick Company, Inc.; Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc.; Cephalon Inc.; Johnson & Johnson; Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc.; Endo Health Solutions Inc.; Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc.; Mallinckrodt PLC; Insys Therapeutics Inc.; Allergan PLC; Actavis Pharma Inc.; McKesson Drug Company; Cardinal Health Inc.; and AmerisouceBergen Corporation.
A portion of the AML’s proposal notes, “Depending upon the results of initial investigations of the facts and circumstances surrounding the potential claim(s), there may be additional parties sought to be made responsible.”
During discussion on joining the AML’s lawsuit, council members voiced their support for the effort while also expressing concern over the proposal’s open-endedness.
“I think this is a great thing,” David Almond said. “But I don’t know if I want to be a part of a lawsuit not knowing exactly who we are going after.”
“It is an epidemic and a problem, and I’m appreciative of everyone who is trying to get onboard and address it,” Nancy Osmon said. “But there’s a big difference between this litigation and the tobacco litigation. The tobacco industry very much targeted [people] and were misleading regarding their products. The manufacturers of the opiates were just making pain killers. That’s a huge difference; they’re going to go after — or try to go after — the medical profession.”
City attorney Roger Morgan said he was not a big supporter of class-action lawsuits, “but from the legislative branch of the city, you probably best need to be prepared to explain to people someday why all the other cities opted in on this — and why you didn’t — if there’s a big settlement.”
Arkansas has the second-highest opioid prescription rate in the nation, at more than 114 prescriptions for every 100 people, behind only Alabama, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Commission joins lawsuit against opioid manufacturers

Jan 8, 2018 | Daily Mountain Eagle (AL)

By Ed Howell

The Walker County Commission voted Thursday 3-0 to join a class action lawsuit against opioid manufacturers and distributors.
District 3 Commissioner Ralph Williams was not present for the meeting.
The lawsuit has already been joined by a number of municipalities and counties across the nation and the state. It is expected the suit will be consolidated with others from across the nation later this year.
District 4 Commissioner Steven Aderholt, who is president and owner of Central Alabama Urgent Care in Dora and, according to LinkedIn, has been in project management and consulting for Glover Drugs for the past 11 years, asked for a couple of delays recently on a decision to do more research on the issue.
On Thursday, Aderholt said, “I had some reservations about the suit. I still do. I think there are some defendants who are misplaced. They’re suing some defendants in here that are unnecessary. I think the adverse effect of that is kind of profound.
“At some point, something has to be done. There are some very needed defendants in this lawsuit. The manufacturers of some of these drugs, absolutely I think need to be held accountable. But I don’t think distributors fall necessarily in that line.”
He said his one vote would not change the list of defendants in the lawsuit, while many of the defendants need to be held accountable. For that reason, he said he favored joining the lawsuit “even with my reservations.” He voted with Commissioners Keith Davis and Jeff Burrough in voting to join the lawsuit.
Birmingham attorney Jeff Friedman of Friedman, Dazzio, Zulanas and Bowling, who is helping spearhead the suit, spoke on Dec. 18 during a 30-minute presentation to the commission about the suit. Friedman told the commission at the time that six counties and 20 cities in the state are involved at that point, with a dozen public hospitals likely to be represented in time.
The county would not be out of pocket for any more funds and updates would come through County Attorney Eddie Jackson and his partner Jim Brakefield, who are involved in the suit. Friedman noted the county could use the revenue from winning damages.
Among the defendants are Purdue Pharma L.P. of Montgomery, Purdue Frederick Co., Inc., of Montgomery, TEVA Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc., of Mountain Brook, Cephalon, Inc., of Mountain Brook, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., of Montgomery, Janssen Pharmaceutica, Inc., of Montgomery, Actavis Pharma of Mountain Brook, McKesson Corp. of Montgomery, Cardinal Health, Inc., of Montgomery, Amerisourcebergen Drug Corp. of Montgomery and Insys Therapeutics, Inc. of Montgomery. All have been fined by the federal government concerning opioids, Friedman said.
According to the suit, opioids include brand names such as OxyContin and Percocet, as well as generics like oxycodone and hydrocodone, and can be highly addictive and dangerous, and are only intended for short-term use — within 90 days — in treating pain.
However, the suit says the companies, in order to increase profits, created a false sense of safety in the minds of medical professionals and patients that would allow for longer use, using marketing campaigns that started in the late 1990s. It said the National Institutes of Health said the marketing was a major cause of the problem. The Food and Drug Administration in 2013 issued warnings about long-term use.
In 2012 alone, opioids generated $8 billion in revenue for drug companies — and 2.1 million Americans suffered that year from substance use disorders related to prescription opioid pain relievers. A total of 78 Americans died every day from opioid overdoses, the suit said.
John Parker, senior vice president of the Healthcare Distribution Alliance (hda.org) in Arlington, Va., a national trade association representing drug distributors including AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson, responded to the commission deliberations in Walker County. Parker said while understanding the opioid epidemic, distributors would not be “scapegoats” on the issue.
“We don’t make medicines, market medicines, prescribe medicines, or dispense them to consumers. Given our role, the idea that distributors are solely responsible for the number of opioid prescriptions written defies common sense and lacks understanding of how the pharmaceutical supply chain actually works and how it is regulated,” he said, adding that the industry was ready to have conversations to work with political leaders and others to find solutions to the epidemic.

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Shreveport and Arklatex counties join lawsuit against opioid industry

Jan 5, 2018 | KTBS (LA)

By Staff

Bowie and Harrison Counties in Texas, Miller County in Arkansas, and the city of Shreveport have all joined a class action lawsuit of more than 200 cites and counties. The hope is to reduce the abuse of opioid painkillers. They are suing the makers and distributors of the drugs.
"This is not a new thing. The opioid problem has been around for quite some time, but it's now reached epidemic proportions," said Hunter Shkolnik of Napoli Shkolnik PLLC.
In December, Shreveport City Council approved the final passage of a resolution authorizing a retainer agreement with Napoli Shkolnik, PLLC and Kenneth M. Carter, APLC. They will serve as joint outside legal counsel in the opioid lawsuit.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that each day, 91 Americans die from overdosing on opioids. So this lawsuit has two goals: governments want to try to stop the flooding of these pills into communities, and they also want to seek compensation to help plaintiffs recoup money lost fighting the epidemic. Many of the lawsuits also hope to force drugmakers to change their marketing tactics, which they argue are deceptive, believing drug makers need to make it abundantly clear just how addictive the pills can be.
In a separate lawsuit 41 states have banded together and have served five major opioid manufacturers with subpoenas. The states are seeking information about how these companies marketed and sold prescription opioids. The coalition is also demanding documents and information related to distribution practices from three drug distributors. The attorney generals of these states are hoping to learn whether these companies may have marketed or distributed their products illegally.
Texas and Louisiana are apart of that lawsuit, however Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge is sitting out this suit. According to the Arkansas Times, Rutledge did send a letter to health insurers urging them to consider alternatives to opioids for pain treatment. She's also touted a program to educate kids about the dangers of drug abuse.
Arkansas AG Spokesman Judd Deere released this statement:
Attorney General Rutledge is committed to tackling the prescription drug abuse epidemic that is spreading across Arkansas with an all-of-the-above approach that includes education, prevention and treatment and could certainly include litigation.
These plaintiffs are targeting manufacturers accused of setting up fake marketing fronts. Napoli Shkolnik Law Firm said organizations were set up to look like medical boards or medical societies. The lawsuit also says the "defendants also made sure that favorable articles were disseminated and cited widely in the medical literature, even where references distorted the significance or meaning of the underlying study. Most notably, a 1980 reference in the well-respected new england journal of medicine." It was written by Jane Porter and Dr. Hershel Jick. It also claimed the new opioids were not addictive.
"And what they did was they used these organizations to pump out papers to suggest pain is a disease. Any kind of pain should be treated with opioids, and everybody jumped on the bandwagon," said Shkolnik.
Manufacturers eventually stopped the distributions and only made the pills, but the distributors continued to move pills into neighborhoods at high rates. Attorney Shkolnik said the distributors received money for doing it from manufacturers.
Most of the companies cited in this lawsuit have released various statements expressing their cooperation with litigation and support of efforts to find solutions to this prevalent problem. But the lawsuit blames these groups for this widespread problem.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the number of fatal drug overdoses in 2016 was expected to top more than 64,000. Many of those deaths involve an opioid, either a legally prescribed narcotic or an illicit drug like heroin or fentanyl.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse estimates that 80% of people who enter treatment for a heroin addiction took their first opioid legally from a prescription.
States have tried to crack down on the problem, primarily with prescription drug monitoring databases. But if addicts can't get prescription painkillers, the lawsuit states that some resort to illegal drugs. The opioid crisis is now reaching epidemic levels.

In October of 2017, President Donald Trump declared the opioid epidemic a public health emergency, but no additional funding has been made available for states and localities to deal with it. In the meantime, while state and local governments fight these battles in court, drug overdose deaths are still climbing. A STAT investigation found that opioids could kill as many as 500,000 Americans in the next decade.

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County may file lawsuit over opioids

Jan 5, 2018 | Wilkes County Journal Patriot

By Jule Hubbard

The Wilkes County commissioners are considering seeking financial compensation for the county’s costs from opioid addiction by filing a federal lawsuit against certain prescription drug manufacturers and distributors.
The commissioners discussed the potential suit in closed session during their meeting Tuesday night.
Gary Blevins, chairman of the commissioners, said Wednesday that the board hasn’t reached a consensus nor taken any action and is still considering the matter. “I am in favor of pursuing a suit for damages for the taxpayers of Wilkes County,” said Blevins.
Attorneys Edward L. Powell and Garry Whitaker from Winston-Salem and Mike Fuller with McHugh Fuller Law Group from Hattiesburg, Miss., met with the five commissioners, County Attorney Tony Triplett and County Manager John Yates during the closed session. Blevins said he invited them.
Powell and Whitaker are local counsel to a law firm consortium consisting of McHugh Fuller Law Group, LLC; Baron & Budd, P. C. of Dallas, Texas; Levin, Papantonio, Thomas, Mitchell, Rafferty & Proctor, PA of Pensacola, Fla.; Powell & Majestro, PLLC of Charleston, W.Va.; Hill, Peterson, Carper, Bee & Deitzler, PLLC of Charleston, W.Va.; and Greene, Ketchum, Farrell, Bailey & Tweel, LLP of Huntington, W.Va., who represent some of the county boards of commissioners in North Carolina that agreed to file suits in federal court against manufacturers and distributors of prescription opioids in late 2017. They include the commissioners of Surry, Yadkin, Buncombe, Rockingham and New Hanover counties.
Whitaker said these suits are being filed on a contingency basis, which means a county will be charged legal fees only if its lawsuit is successful or if it results in an out of court settlement that is favorable to the county. He said the Wilkes suit, if filed, would be handled the same.
The boards of Burke, Rutherford, Randolph, Onslow and Brunswick counties, as well as the Wilmington and Jacksonville governing bodies, publicly stated in late 2017 that they are considering filing federal suits against drug companies.
The New York Times reported that nearly 200 local governments nationwide have filed federal lawsuits against opioid manufacturers and distributors.
Official in Wilkes and other area counties have often cited the increased costs of foster care, law enforcement, jail housing, health care and other public services as a result of opioid addiction.
Blevins said a suit filed on behalf of Wilkes would likely utilize a legal procedure called “multidistrict litigation,” in which multiple civil suits with a common issue are transferred to a single federal district court for discovery and other pretrial proceedings. Each case returns to its original court for a trial and decision.
Whitaker said the position of county governments he represents in suits against pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors is that manufacturers told doctors their products were safe and minimized risks of addiction. “We contend that this was not the case and that they (manufacturers) were aware that it was not the case. They marketed the drugs as having beneficial uses that were outright deceptive,” he said.
“We contend that this was not the case and that they (manufacturers) were aware that it was not the case. They marketed the drugs as having beneficial uses that outweighed the risks. That was simply wrong,” he said.
Whitaker said pharmaceutical distributors were given the right to be middle men in a closed market, and, therefore, had an obligation to report suspicious prescription opioid orders. He said they were suspicious because of the large volume of pills ordered and the frequency of the orders. “It is our contention that they failed to fulfill these obligations.”
He added, “This is more of a situation where a blind eye was turned. They had a duty by law to report what was going on.”
Whitaker said the failure to report suspicious prescription opioid orders prevented the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency from investigating illegal diversion of lawfully prescribed opioids.
He said the suits cannot make claims based on what companies did or failed to do more than four years ago and in some instances over three years ago.
He noted that the opioid prescribing rate in Wilkes County was 91.4 prescriptions per 100 people (adults and children) in 2016. Columbus County had the highest rate at 177.8, followed by Surry County with 164 and Burke County with 151.5.
The 165-page Surry County suit, filed Dec. 29 by Whitaker, lists 24 drug manufacturers, distributors and their subsidiaries as defendants.
The Surry suit alleges that the companies used various methods to deceptively market painkillers and other opioid medication, and provided misleading or false information about how addictive those drugs could become. It said the companies marketed those drugs specifically to vulnerable populations such as the elderly and veterans.
The Surry suit claims the defendant companies engaged in an illegal racketeering scheme to promote opioids and ignored suspiciously high orders of opioid prescriptions that would have indicated an illegal market for the medications.
It said the result was huge profits for the companies and devastating impacts for counties such as Surry, which had 46 opiate-related deaths from 1999 to 2007, and 100 of these deaths from 2008 to 2016.
According to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Wilkes County had the third-highest overdose death rate in the country in 2007 at 28.5 per 100,000. This was attributed primarily to opioids.

Multiple efforts to address this problem helped bring the overdose death rate down from a peak of 46.6 per 100,000 people in 2009 to 24.5 per 100,000 in 2012.

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Northeast (NY, MD)

Oswego County sues drug companies, doctors over opioid marketing

Jan 7, 2018 | Watertown Daily Times (NY)

By Staff

Oswego County is suing pharmaceutical companies and doctors concerning the marketing of opioids.
Simmons Hanly Conroy, one of the nation’s largest law firms focused on consumer protection and mass tort actions, filed a lawsuit Jan. 4 on behalf of Oswego County against pharmaceutical companies and doctors over the aggressive and fraudulent marketing of prescription opioid painkillers that has led to a drug epidemic in the county and throughout the nation.
The county seeks relief in the complaint, including compensatory and punitive damages, for the millions of dollars it spends each year to combat the public nuisance created by the drug companies’ deceptive marketing campaign that misrepresents the safety and efficacy of long-term opioid use.
The defendants in the lawsuit are: Purdue Pharma L.P.; Purdue Pharma, Inc.; The Purdue Frederick Company, Inc.; Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc.; Cephalon, Inc.; Johnson & Johnson; Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Janssen Pharmaceutica, Inc.; Endo Health Solutions Inc.; Endo Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Insys Therapeutics, Inc.; Dr. Russell Portenoy; Dr. Perry Fine; Dr. Scott Fishman; and Dr. Lynn Webster.
The lawsuit filing follows similar action taken by Simmons on behalf of eight other counties in New York last year. The lawsuits, which were initially filed in each counties’ State Supreme Court, will be consolidated to State Supreme Court in Suffolk County and heard by State Supreme Court Justice Jerry Garguilo.
“Oswego County is the latest in an expanding list of New York counties to conclude that drug companies must be held responsible for their fraudulent and deceptive role in causing the worst drug epidemic the country has ever seen,” said Simmons Hanly Conroy Shareholder Paul Hanly, lead counsel for the county in this case.
“The defendants have manufactured, promoted and marketed opioids by omitting critical information that has long been known about the drugs’ addictive qualities and other risks associated with their prolonged use,” Hanly said.
“Today’s action builds upon the important work of addressing the opioid crisis in New York,” said Oswego County Attorney Richard C. Mitchell. “Oswego County, like many others across the state, has suffered great losses due to the defendants’ recklessness and negligence about the long-term effects of opioid use. Together, with Simmons Hanly Conroy, we will work to hold the defendants responsible for their actions.”
According to the complaint, at least 67 Oswego County residents died from opioid-related overdose fatalities between 2009 and 2014. In 2014 alone, there were 245 opioid-related emergency department admissions in Oswego County, a 113 percent increase since 2010, and 380 inpatient hospital admissions for the same reason.
More than 700 Oswego County residents were admitted to chemical dependence treatment programs in 2015. Officials reported a total of 118 naloxone administration events, though actual numbers of administration events may be higher.
Apart from the toll on human life, the crisis has financially strained the services the counties provide its residents and employees. Human services, social services, court services, law enforcement services, the office of the coroner/medical examiner and health services, including hospital, emergency and ambulatory services, have all been severely impacted by the crisis.
For example, the lawsuit states the counties have paid, and continue to pay, millions of dollars for health care costs stemming from prescription opioid dependency. These costs include unnecessary and excessive opioid prescriptions, substance abuse treatment services, ambulatory services, emergency department services, and inpatient hospital services, among others.
The defendants’ conduct also caused the counties to incur substantial economic, administrative and social costs relating to opioid addiction and abuse, including criminal justice costs, victimization costs, child protective services costs, lost productivity costs, and education and prevention program costs, among others, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleges the defendants sought to create a false perception in the minds of doctors, patients and health care providers that using opioids to treat chronic pain was safe for most patients and that the drugs’ benefits outweighed the risks.
This was allegedly perpetrated through a civil conspiracy involving a coordinated, sophisticated and highly deceptive promotion and marketing campaign that began in the late 1990s, became more aggressive around 2006, and is ongoing, according to the lawsuit.
Specifically, the complaint details how the defendants allegedly poured significant financial resources into generating articles, continuing medical education courses and other “educational” materials, conducting sales visits to doctors, and supporting a network of professional societies and advocacy groups — all of which were successful in the intended purpose of creating a new and phony “consensus” supporting the long-term use of opioids.
The Oswego County lawsuit follows similar, ongoing action in New York filed by Simmons Hanly Conroy on behalf of counties across the state. In addition to Oswego County, Simmons has also filed similar lawsuits in Broome, Dutchess, Erie, Orange, Schenectady, Seneca, Suffolk and Sullivan counties.

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Putnam Joins Suit Against Big Pharma Over Opioids

Jan 8, 2018 | Southeast Patch (NY)

By Lanning Taliaferro

Putnam County has joined the New York Opioid Cost Recovery litigation. The lawsuit is against the pharmaceutical companies and distributors for fraudulent and negligent practices they engaged in, which caused immeasurable harm to residents and taxpayers.
The resolution was passed by the Putnam County Legislature in November and signed by County Executive MaryEllen Odell in December.
"Heroin and opioid use is a major public health and safety crisis and the costs to our community is not limited to pain and suffering of the individuals and families impacted," said Odell in a statement at the time. "Unfortunately, there is also a taxpayer impact including massive resources used in county public health, law enforcement, court system, mental health and social services, coroner and medical examiner and many other programs and services. The County has significant damages and we will aggressively pursue those damages through litigation."
The goal of the litigation would be to fully compensate Putnam County for unnecessary cost incurred because of prescription opioid abuse, including workplace costs relative to loss of productivity, healthcare costs such as abuse treatment and criminal justice costs.
Heroin and opiates are now the leading cause of accidental death in New York State, outnumbering homicides, county officials said. In fact, in the past three years, over 40 fatal opioid overdoses were reported in Putnam County.
The number of drug-related arrests have gone up also from 339 in 2016 to 456 as of early December 2017, according to the Putnam County District Attorney's Office.
The connection between prescription drugs and heroin stems from the abuse of prescription opioid pain killers, and is directly related to heroin's growth in popularity with young people: these pills are the doorway to heroin abuse, county officials said.
"Filing a lawsuit also allows the County to be in the driver's seat and control its own destiny," Odell said. "We have the power to determine whether to accept a settlement and how any recovery would be distributed, not the State."
Putnam County will work with the NYS Attorney General's Office to ensure that the county's costs are included in any proposed settlement. The Attorney General's Office is part of a multi-state negotiating team investigating the manufacturers and distributor practices.
The law firm of Napoli Shkolnik PLLC will represent Putnam County's interests in the New York Opioid Cost Recovery litigation.

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Baltimore County To Sue Pharmaceutical Companies Over Opioid Distribution

Jan 8, 2018 | WBAL (MD)

By Staff

Baltimore County intends to file a federal lawsuit against some pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors of opioids, executive Kevin Kamenetz says.
The announcement comes after 187 substance related deaths came in Baltimore County in the first six months of 2017.
“The opioid crisis has led to a significant increase of overdoses from heroin and prescription drug abuse,” Kamenetz said in a statement. "We believe that the pharmaceutical industry pressured and cajoled physicians into prescribing opioids for chronic pain, and vastly misrepresented the risk of addiction. The desire to increase profits on the part of drug companies is a leading cause of our nation’s health crisis, and we must fight back.”
The county has obtained expenses for first-responders, drug counseling programs and other related costs.

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Albany County files federal lawsuit against big pharma

Jan 5, 2018 | Times Union (NY)

By Amanda Fries

Albany County on Friday filed a federal lawsuit against against several national pharmaceutical manufacturers for their role in the opioid epidemic.
County Executive Daniel McCoy, a co-chair for the County Executives of America's Opioid Abuse Task Force, announced Friday that the lawsuit will be part of a national pursuit, with joint efforts in Ohio, to recuperate costs associated with dealing with drug overdoses and change the way drug companies market their products.
McCoy started working with the South Carolina-based Motley Rice law firm through the County Executives of America in July, mulling their legal options. The law firm is known for its work on suits targeting tobacco companies as well as negotiating lawsuits involving the energy giant BP's oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Participation in legal action won't cost the taxpayers, McCoy said.
Albany officials estimate taxpayers shell out well over $1 million annually dealing with drug overdoses, and lawmakers want pharmaceutical companies to pay up.
Officials say taxpayers front the costs involved with social services, law enforcement and Medicaid linked to medication abuse, seen to be fueled by drug companies prescribing painkillers. Those taking these drugs can become addicted and turn to the cheaper high of heroin for their fix.
This national lawsuit comes on the heels of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s State of the State address, where the New York governor pledged to sue pharmaceutical companies that breached "their legal duties to monitor, detect and report suspicious orders of prescription opioids."

Governments across the state have launched task forces to combat the crisis, and many counties have filed individual lawsuits against some pharmaceutical companies seeking compensation for costs associated by the epidemic -- from the strain on the criminal justice system to hard-hit social service departments.

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Oswego County sues drug companies over opioid epidemic

Jan 5, 2018 | Syracuse.com (NY)

By James T. Mulder

Oswego County is suing pharmaceutical companies and doctors for aggressively and fraudulently marketing prescription opioid painkillers that has led to a drug epidemic in the county and nationwide.
Simmons Hanly Conroy, a big law firm focused on consumer protection and mass tort actions, filed the lawsuit on behalf of Oswego County. The law firm filed similar suits on behalf of eight other counties in New York last year.
At least 67 Oswego County residents died from opioid overdoses between 2009 and 2014, according to the complaint.
In 2014 there were 245 opioid-related emergency department admissions in Oswego County, a 113 percent increase since 2010, and 380 inpatient hospital admissions for the same reason, the complaint says.
"Oswego County is the latest in an expanding list of New York counties to conclude that drug companies must be held responsible for their fraudulent and deceptive role in causing the worst drug epidemic the country has ever seen," Paul Hanly, lead attorney for the county in the case, said in a prepared statement.
The defendants in the lawsuit are: Purdue Pharma L.P.; Purdue Pharma, Inc.; The Purdue Frederick Company, Inc.; Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc.; Cephalon, Inc.; Johnson& Johnson; Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Janssen Pharmaceutica, Inc.; Endo Health Solutions Inc.; Endo Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Insys Therapeutics, Inc.; Dr. Russell Portenoy; Dr. Perry Fine; Dr. Scott Fishman; and Dr. Lynn Webster.
The county seeks relief in the complaint that includes compensatory and punitive damages, for the millions of dollars the suit says it spends each year to combat the public nuisance created by the drug companies' deceptive marketing campaign that misrepresents the safety and efficacy of long-term opioid use.
The drug problem has cost the county millions in costs related to treatment services, criminal justice services, prevention programs, child protective services and other services, according to the complaint.

The law firm has filed similar lawsuits in Broome, Dutchess, Erie, Orange, Schenectady, Seneca, Suffolk and Sullivan counties.

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Southwest (TX)

Wichita Co. latest to join federal opioid lawsuit

Jan 5, 2018 | RNN Texoma (TX)

By Alex Achten

Wichita County is finalizing a deal with the Altman Law Firm to represent the county in a lawsuit against big pharmaceutical companies and the opioid epidemic.
On Tuesday, county commissioners made the decision official. They decided to take part because they need to get a handle on the problem.
Statistics show that Wichita County is one of the top opioid using counties in the state. It's cost the county money, affected the tax rate, and led to lost lives.
"It does affect us here locally," Precinct 1 Commissioner, Mark Beauchamp said. "It affects each and every one of our pocketbooks. It affects our tax rate."
The opioid epidemic has spread throughout the country. It's why counties from every state are joining a federal lawsuit.
They're going after money lost, spent resources used to address the problem. They're going after pharmaceutical companies.
"They may have presented things that told the physicians this is not addictive, it's not a problem," Wichita County Judge, Woody Gossom said. "They've kind of softened on it and in the outcome, it appears it's very addictive."
According to the American Thoracic Society, opioid overdose cases in 162 U.S. intensive care units increased by 34 percent in 2015.
In 2009 the average cost of treating ICU overdose patients was $58,517 dollars. In 2015 it was over $92,000. What about Wichita County?
"Last years statistics show that there's more than one prescription of opioid medication written for every individual in Wichita County," Commissioner Beauchamp said. "That's just what was written in Wichita County itself. How many people that live in this county and go to Oklahoma City or Dallas to doctors and get additional prescriptions prescribed?"
County leaders said it's important to stay in front of this epidemic and that's their goal by joining the lawsuit.
"We're doing our best to do what we can do to control to work with," Judge Gossom said. "We've had good aggressive law enforcement and prosecution."
"To be one of the lead counties in the state to take a hold of this charge, it does feel good," Commissioner Beauchamp said. "It puts us in a good position."
The process is a slow one. Commissioner Beauchamp said it could take as long as five years, and that is if a settlement is reached.
Judge Gossom said they won't have day-to-day involvement in the lawsuit. He added that people need to be aware that while opioids can be very beneficial, they are even more addicting.

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Commentary and FYIs

America's Opioid Crisis Looks a Lot Like Big Tobacco Spats of Yesteryear

Jan 7, 2018 | The Street

By Bill Meagher

While the opioid crisis has made headlines across the country little's been done at a federal level that could truely make a dent in the nation-wide epidemic. And thus, the industry has widely ignored the issue, paying nominal fines along the way and placating consumers with statements about their willingness to address the issue.
The biggest victim of the opioid crisis, is of course, the patients who get addicted to these drugs. At the same time the crisis could seemingly turn a number of companies on their heads much in the way that big tobacco suits of the late 1990s forever changed the tobacco industry.
Pharmaceutical manufacturers such as Purdue Pharma, Endo International plc (ENDP) , Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (TEVA) , Johnson & Johnson Inc. (JNJ) and Allergan plc. (AGN) as well as distributors Cardinal Health Inc. (CAH) , McKesson Corp. (MCK) and AmerisourceBergen Corp. (ABC) have all been challenged by various parties to take action in the opioid epidemic.
These companies, and others like them, have been asked to come to negotiating table to discuss potential settlement as 41 states have demanded documents over allegations for unfair sales practices, Medicaid fraud and creating a public nuisance, among other things. So far, not much has come of these suits, but that could change.
Ohio is ground zero, where ten people die every day from opioids leaving behind families and friends and creating holes in cities and towns in the Buckeye state that don't heal easily. And there is a cost beyond the human. Children moved from addicted parents to foster care cost $45 million a year. Indeed, half the kids in foster care come from parents addicted to opioids. Counseling and medication costs $216 million a year. Treating kids who are born drug dependent adds another $130 million. Ohio estimates that work lost because of the opioid crisis, fatal overdoses, and medical expenses costs $4 billion a year. From 2011 to 2015 3.8 billion doses of opioid meds were prescribed in Ohio. The state only has 11.6 million residents. In 2016, it lost 4,050 of those residents to overdoses of opioids, heroin and fentanyl, a dangerous synthetic opioid, according to Ohio's own data.
Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine gave the companies listed above as well as Teva subsidiary Cephalon and J&J sub Janssen Pharmaceuticals until the end of November to come forward to settle a lawsuit that alleges the companies mislead doctors as well as the public regarding the safety and addictive qualities of their opioid-based drugs. The companies are accused of unfair sales practices, Medicaid fraud and creating a public nuisance.
The clock has run out and DeWine's office posted a link to the letters inviting the companies to sit down for settlement talks on its website. All eight of the companies responded to Ohio with letters. Janssen, Teva and Allergan said they were willing to meet with the AG's office. Amerisource and McKesson did meet and in a letter to McKesson, DeWine questioned the company's willingness to work toward a solution. In letters made available to TheStreet by DeWine, the attorney general told Endo, Cardinal and Purdue that their response wasn't good enough, which included a suggestion by Endo and Purdue that Ohio drop its lawsuit.
"I am disappointed in your response to my letter suggesting we meet to discuss ways to address Ohio's opioid crisis, DeWine said. "I had hoped you would see this as an opportunity to come together to find ways to help alleviate the vast harm the opioid epidemic has caused and promote strategies to prevent future harm. Instead, you reiterated a tired denial of responsibility and conditioned any further discussions on my office abandoning the case we have filed against you. That is something I simply cannot do."
The public release of information about settlement meetings puts the companies on notice they are in for the kind of legal battle that not only brought tobacco companies such as Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) , Reynolds American and Lorillard (now part of Reynolds to the bargaining table, but, found them paying out billions of dollars without going to trial.
Ohio's lawsuit represents a material risk for the companies according to analysts. "Purdue is the poster child for the opioid epidemic," said Jeffrey Loo, an analyst for CFRA. "This could be very material."
Besides the lawsuits filed by other states, counties and cities, the possible action by the collective 41 state attorneys general looms large in terms of legal fire power. The requests by that group for documents from the pharmaceutical companies are viewed as a way to gauge whether a legal effort by the group could succeed.
DeWine's lawsuit, filed in Ross County in May actually points at the pharmaceutical companies for behavior similar to the tobacco companies, "borrowing a page from Big Tobacco's playbook" by hiding or downplaying the risks of addiction by using opioids.
The action also details the use of front groups in the marketing of opioids to the public, a tactic also utilized by the tobacco companies to sell cigarettes.
While the pharmaceutical companies may not be beating a path to Columbus to talk to DeWine, that doesn't mean they aren't responding. A spokesman for Janssen said in an email "We believe the allegations in the lawsuit against our company are both legally and factually unfounded. Responsibly used opioid-based pain medicines give doctors and patients important choices to help manage the debilitating effects of chronic pain. Janssen has acted in the best interests of patients and physicians with regard to opioid pain medicines, which are FDA-approved and carry FDA-mandated warnings about possible risks on every product label."
Teva had no comment on DeWine's offer to settle. Endo said it did not comment on pending litigation. Janssen declined to comment on DeWine. Purdue and Allergan did not respond to repeated requests for interviews.
In an email to TheStreet, a representative of AmerisourceBergen said "We welcome the opportunity to meet with Attorney General DeWine and work with the people of Ohio as well as fellow members of the wholesale distribution community, the wider pharmaceutical supply chain and law enforcement and regulatory professionals to combat opioid abuse."
Ronny Gal, pharmaceutical analyst for Sanford C. Bernstein said "I would be surprised if at least some of the manufacturers do not consider discussion. Never hurts to talk."
In September, Purdue asked the court to toss the lawsuit. The company said that the action fails to prove that the company's marketing of its pain killer caused specific harm and that the legal action bumps up against federal law because the Food and Drug Administration approved Oxycontin as well as its safety warnings.
The lawsuit is still in process.Familiar Faces to Fight With Ohio
To fight Big Pharma, Ohio in particular, has brought in some battle-tested veterans to get the job done.
Ohio has hired attorneys Steve Berman, Grant Woods and Mike Moore who are kind of putting the band back together, having all participated in the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement, the landmark lawsuit that pitted the four largest tobacco companies in the U.S. against attorneys general from 46 states that resulted in a $246 billion settlement in 1999.
Berman, a partner in Hagens Berman Sobel Shapiro, and Woods and Moore of Grant Woods Law and Mike Moore Law Firm, respectively, have all been retained by Ohio. Those firms, along with Isaac, Wiles, Burkeholder & Teeter LLC, Davidson Bowie PLLC, and McGowan, Hood and Felder have been retained on a contingency basis to litigate against the five pharma companies, with the maximum payout of $50 million in fees.
Moore, the former attorney general of Mississippi, gained some degree of fame from his pursuit of the tobacco settlement. He starred as himself in Michael Mann's film "The Insider "along with Russell Crowe and Al Pacino.
One of the tactics used by Moore, Woods, Berman and others in the tobacco battle was to portray the companies in a public light as unwilling to address the public health issues their products had caused. By making the offer of settlement meetings public, Ohio looks as if it wants to address those issues, and if the companies don't at least take the meetings, the pharmaceutical companies will look like they are ducking the problem.
Richard Ausness, the dean of the University of Kentucky law school and an expert on product liability, points out that in the current environment, pharmaceutical companies need to protect their public personas. "Of course they care about their reputations, but it goes beyond that," he said. "The environment plays a large role with the courts and they can't help but be influenced by outside factors."
Moreover, DeWine has made no bones about the fact that his state would like to deal with the deadly and expensive opioid issue quickly, not wanting a trial to drag on for years.
And Ausness points out that individual lawsuits brought by consumers against tobacco companies historically failed. "But once the government entities became involved in a large number, things changed."
Pharmaceutical companies say that lawsuits like the one brought by Ohio are flawed because the companies only make the approved drugs and that they are far removed from the possible abuse of the drugs as the products flow to wholesalers, pharmacies, prescribing physicians and even street dealers.
The argument is similar to the one used effectively by gun manufacturers in lawsuits brought by cities when some judges ruled the companies were not liable for the misuse of the product.Ohio Isn't Alone
There are other states suing over drugs like OxyContin, Percocet and Duragesic. Massachusetts, Washington, New Jersey, Missouri, Alaska, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Louisiana and South Carolina have all filed, and the lawyers-full-employment act doesn't end there.
At least 41 state attorneys general have banding together and are demanding the companies make internal documents available, "Our subpoenas and letters seek to uncover whether or not there was a deception involved, if manufacturers misled doctors and patients about the efficacy and addictive power of these drugs," New York Attorney General Eric Scheiderman said in a statement about the action.
More than a third of the counties in Wisconsin are going to court as well.
Cities in New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Washington, Texas, Oregon and Florida have joined the fray, retaining law firms to address the opioid issue.
Even the Native American Cherokee Nation is teeing up lawyers, going after Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) , CVS Health Corp. (CVS) , Wal-Mart (WMT) , AmerisourceBergen, McKesson and Cardinal Health for their roles in the distribution and sale of prescription pain killers.
The rise of opioid use has extracted a cost on a national basis as well. A new report released Nov. 20 by the president's Council of Economic Advisors puts the cost of the opioid crisis in 2015 at $504 billion, or almost 3% of that year's GNP. The American Society of Addiction Medicine reports that in that same year, 20,101 deaths were caused by prescription opioids and another 12,990 deaths were attributed to heroin overdoses.
At least 716 people in Arizona are believed to have died of opioid-related overdoses during a six-month stretch of 2017, far exceeding previous death statistics that span an entire calendar year, according to the state health department.A Long History of an Up-Hill Battle
Loo said he would think the pharma companies being sued by Ohio would feel it's not in their best interest to settle the lawsuits now.
Certainly, the company with the most experience in opioid-related lawsuits is privately-held Purdue Pharma. The company introduced OxyContin in 1995 to much attention as a long-lasting pain prescription. Its active ingredient, oxycodone, is a relative to heroin and more powerful than better known morphine. Earlier this year, Purdue paid $20 million to Canadian plaintiffs who alleged the company had "overmarketed" its drug and recently launched a campaign to show what it is doing to address the opioid issue.
In 2015 Purdue settled a lawsuit brought by Kentucky charging the company had failed to make clear how addictive the drug was, with the payout of $24 million. Eight years earlier, the company paid $470 million to state and federal agencies to settle similar charges, and paid another $130 million to lawyers and plaintiffs to settle civil actions. Those settlements also covered criminal charges against the company for misbranding its product. Purdue also paid almost $20 million to 26 states and Washington DC to settle allegations that it had encouraged "over prescription" of the drug. In 2004, the company settled with West Virginia for $10 million.
Quintiles IMS Holdings Inc. estimates opioid sales totaled $8.6 billion in 2016. Industry estimates put Purdue's share of that at $1.3 billion.
Ausness, of the University of Kentucky, points out that lawsuits may not necessarily change behavior of Purdue or any of the other companies being sued. "Purdue was sued years ago, and they are being sued again."
While Purdue is the highest profile player in the opioid crisis, they certainly aren't alone.
McKesson, the San Francisco-based drug distributor, has spent its share of time in the harsh glare of the media spotlight. Investigative stalwart 60 Minutes and the Washington Post teamed up on a December report that showed the infighting between the Drug Enforcement Agency and the Justice Department over how best to go after McKesson regarding allegations that the company had been careless in its distribution and sale of opioids. While the DEA felt it had a criminal case against the company and more than enough evidence of wrongdoing for federal prosecutors, the case never saw the inside of a courtroom. Prosecutors maintained the case didn't merit criminal charges and wasn't strong enough. At one point the DOJ allegedly suggested the DEA become friendlier with the pharmaceutical industry.
Instead the DOJ huddled with a team of lawyers defending McKesson, negotiating a settlement that included a $150 million fine and a suspension of four of McKesson's drug warehouses and increased staffing as well as McKesson hiring an independent monitor.
While the DEA chafed on TV and in print, McKesson denied wrongdoing and said that the report was inaccurate in a public statement. As for the DOJ, it has been radio silent on its handling of the McKesson case.
It was the second time that McKesson had issues over its sale of opioids. In 2008 the company paid a fine of $13.25 million for failing to report hundreds of suspicious oxy sales. Perhaps companies look at federal action as the cost of doing business. Or the lack of criminal charges against McKesson earlier this year may mean pharmaceutical companies have nothing to fear from the feds. Or perhaps Professor Ausness is right, threats of legal action may not change corporate behavior.Can States Kick the Can Upstairs (to Washington)?
Not all government entities are equally engaged. When he was on the campaign trail, then candidate Trump promised if elected, to deal with the opioid crisis. After gaining the White House, Trump put a commission together led by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, and in August Trump said he was going to declare a national emergency. In October he made good on that pledge, declaring an emergency but failed to make any federal funds available to take up recommendations made by the commission.
So far, his national emergency looks like a photo op.
Still, despite the lack of action from the feds, the pressure may be building on the pharma companies. Purdue has bought full page as in the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal stating that "No one solution will end the crisis, but multiple, overlapping efforts will. We want everyone engaged to know you have a partner in Purdue Pharma. This is our fight, too."
It's a fight that could cost pharma companies billions.
Ausness points out that the invite to Ohio may be a cost cutting measure on the part of the lawyers representing the state, looking at a quick settlement as a way of cutting the cost of potential litigation as well as the discovery process. "This kind of lawsuit is expensive to pursue for plaintiffs lawyers, but the pharmaceutical companies have no worries about legal bills," he said.
But something else isn't adding up for Ausness. "It isn't unusual for plaintiff law firms to approach the other side quietly to talk settlement. But that isn't what happened here."

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Connelly: AG reveals how big drug maker markets its opioids

Jan 5, 2018 | SeattlePi (WA)

By Joel Connelly

The manufacturer of OxyContin has pledged to "redouble" its efforts against illegal abuse of the opioid drug, but unsealed documents tell a far different story of how Purdue Pharma aggressively promoted use of the drug in Washington state.
The documents, which Purdue claimed were a trade secret, were recently unsealed by King County Superior Court Judge Catherine Moore on a motion by Attorney General Bob Ferguson. Ferguson has filed a lawsuit accusing the drug maker of fueling the opioid epidemic in Washington state.
"These newly unsealed details further illustrate the mechanics of Purdue's massive deception," Ferguson said Friday. "Purdue ignored warning signs and their own studies while targeting high-prescribing doctors in Washington state."
OxyContin is a long lasting narcotic prescribed for serious pain. Introduced by Purdue 23 years ago, its lone active ingredient is oxycodone, a chemical similar to heroin with up to twice the power of morphine.
"Few drugs are as dangerous as the opioids," Dr. David Kessler, former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, told the New Yorker last year.
The information unsealed in Ferguson's suit details how Purdue's sales staff marketed its drugs to the state's highest drug prescribing doctors, and did not follow a 2007 court order to report "atypical" prescribing of its drugs.

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Suing wholesalers won't help Tennessee solve opioid crisis (EDITORIAL)

Jan 8, 2018 | Knox News (TN)

By Drew Johnson

We do not need to review statistics to tell us we have too many opioid overdose deaths in Tennessee or that families and communities are suffering from opioid dependency. The crisis is real. But frivolous lawsuits are not the answer.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse believes the genesis of the opioid addiction problem came when pharmaceutical manufacturers reassured the medical community that prescription opioid pain relievers were not addictive. Consequently, health care providers increased rates of opioid prescriptions, putting more pills into American homes. Extra pills were diverted from medicine cabinets and misused. And so it began.
The opioid crisis is taking a serious toll here in East Tennessee. Many of the highest rates of opioid addictions and opioid-related deaths in America are in the rural areas surrounding Knoxville, including parts of Roane, Hamblen and Campbell counties.
Pharmaceutical manufacturers have been sued off and on for years, and those lawsuits have produced some damning information about drugs such as OxyContin. However, in the past few months a new kind of lawsuit has emerged and the result could be a major distraction from genuine solutions.
Some wealthy trial lawyers from West Virginia concocted a feeble legal theory against wholesale distributors, the companies that specialize in the logistics and transportation of medical supplies and prescription medicine. These companies do not sell directly to the public, nor do they write prescriptions or market opioids. However, they do sustain good-paying jobs for thousands of families across the country.
Court records in McDowell County, West Virginia, indicate that to win in court, plaintiffs suing wholesale distributors will have to either identify suspicious orders from suspicious pharmacies themselves – something none of the 200-plus cases have ever accomplished – or force each and every pharmacy to present their own defense at their own expense. In other words, small businesses that have been accused of no crime will have to prove to elected officials that they were not in a secret black market. It’s outrageous.
A wacky cast of characters are pushing lawsuits in the hopes that their sheer number will force a settlement, of which they will be entitled to 30 percent, plus expenses. They get richer, communities get their scraps and the addiction crisis continues.
Allowing trial lawyers to exploit the opioid crisis to make a quick buck by inventing scapegoats that divert the focus from the real problem is only going to delay the arrival of workable solutions that save lives while costing local businesses big bucks to defend themselves from lawsuits dreamed up by out-of-state lackluster legal thinkers.
Every credible authority indicates that lawmakers, doctors, pharmacists, law enforcement agencies and the pharmaceutical supply chain must work together to promote addiction treatment, re-educate prescribers and interdict black market diversion. Let’s turn away from get-rich-quick lawsuits and towards meaningful, lifesaving solutions.

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Opioid lawsuits about greed (LETTER TO THE EDITOR)

Jan 8, 2018 | The Columbus Dispatch (OH)

By John Meekins

Seeing that Franklin County commissioners are seeking to join the city of Columbus and others in existing lawsuits blaming the greed of drug manufacturers and distributors for the opioid crisis (“County expected to join suit on opioids,” Friday Dispatch article), all I can think of is “Monkey see, monkey do.”
I doubt that this lawsuit — or one by Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine’s office suing five opioid-drug manufacturers — will have any impact at all on the opioid crisis. The only beneficiaries, I suspect, will be the attorneys handling the case and the government entities that expect to get some of the billions of dollars drug companies will fork over to settle the lawsuit. Opioid users? Victims? I doubt any party to the lawsuits really worries about these people. Those suing just don’t want to miss out on the big payday for all those government entities. I suspect it really comes down to governmental greed.

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Pharmaceutical companies are not to blame for the opioid crisis (LETTER TO THE EDITOR)

Jan 8, 2018 | Rockford Register Star (IL)

By Charles Pagels

I find it interesting that the Winnebago County board and the Rockford City Council are becoming parties to a lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies to combat the opioid crisis. Maybe I missed the point of the lawsuit? Pharmaceutical companies are manufacturing legal medications that are ordered and sold legally to pharmacies. What have the pharmaceutical companies done that is unlawful or has directly contributed to the opioid crisis?
Additionally, if we follow the “politician logic,” maybe the county and city should sue the national liquor distillery companies. Why? Because in 2015, the Center for Disease Control reports that there where 35,000 deaths nationally due to overdose on prescribed opioids. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism reports that there are 88,000 deaths annually from alcohol-related causes.
Individual people are abusing opioids. In many, if not most cases, individual abusers are obtaining prescriptions for those opioid drugs from licensed doctors. I would think it might be better to focus on all those prescriptions written for opioids. Are there any physicians who write an excessive number of prescriptions to a select few “patients” in Winnebago County and the city of Rockford? This might be a better starting point to investigate the problem of opioid abuse in our area.
It seems to me that all the fanfare by the Winnebago County board and Rockford City Council is political posturing.

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AmerisourceBergen Foundation Launches Municipal Support Program to Help Combat Opioid Abuse (Press Release)

Jan 5, 2018 | AmerisourceBergen

The AmerisourceBergen Foundation today announced the launch of a municipal support program that aims to promote the safe disposal of opioids by providing communities nationwide with resources to deactivate expired or unused prescription medications.
As part of the program, the AmerisourceBergen Foundation – a not-for-profit charitable organization focused on supporting health-related causes that enrich the global community and the philanthropic arm of AmerisourceBergen Corporation – will distribute drug deactivation resources to municipalities that are actively working to prevent opioid abuse and misuse. The disposable resources use a new technology, which – when combined with water – effectively deactivate opioids, rendering them ineffective for misuse and providing a safe solution for site-of-use disposal.
“The epidemic of opioid abuse demands action, attention and a collaborative approach. The safe disposal of unused prescription medications is a critical component in combating the issue, as it reduces the risk for misuse, abuse and diversion,” said Gina Clark, President of the AmerisourceBergen Foundation who is also Executive Vice President and Chief Communications & Administration Officer at AmerisourceBergen. “At AmerisourceBergen and the AmerisourceBergen Foundation, we are united in our responsibility to create healthier futures. Through this program, we will provide communities with the resources needed to deactivate prescription medications in a safe and effective manner, and help advance their efforts to prevent opioid abuse.”
As a global healthcare solutions leader, AmerisourceBergen plays a critical role in the pharmaceutical supply chain, working as a link between manufacturers and healthcare providers to help ensure patients have access to the medications they need, when they need them.
In order to support the Foundation’s new program, AmerisourceBergen will leverage its network of distribution centers to provide communities across the country with access to the drug deactivation resources.
Municipal entities that are interested in applying for the drug deactivation resources or learning more about the program can visit the AmerisourceBergen Foundation website at: www.amerisourcebergenfoundation.org
About the AmerisourceBergen Foundation
Established in 2014, the AmerisourceBergen Foundation focuses on health and wellbeing initiatives that improve patient outcomes including pharmaceutical accessibility programs, pharmaceutical adherence programs and health improvement research. The Foundation aims to enhance healthcare delivery and improve access. The AmerisourceBergen Foundation is a separate not-for-profit charitable organization distinct from AmerisourceBergen Corporation. For more information on the AmerisourceBergen Foundation, visit: www.amerisourcebergenfoundation.org.
About AmerisourceBergen

AmerisourceBergen provides pharmaceutical products, value-driving services and business solutions that improve access to care. Tens of thousands of healthcare providers, veterinary practices and livestock producers trust us as their partner in the pharmaceutical supply chain. Global manufacturers depend on us for services that drive commercial success for their products. Through our daily work—and powered by our 20,000 associates—we are united in our responsibility to create healthier futures. AmerisourceBergen is ranked #11 on the Fortune 500, with more than $150 billion in annual revenue. The company is headquartered in Valley Forge, Pa. and has a presence in 50+ countries. Learn more at amerisourcebergen.com.

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Broadcast Media Coverage

9 On Your Side Morning Edition II

Jan 8, 2018 | WNCT (CBS)

By Greenville, NC

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796222?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
Rough Transcript: the pitt county board of commissioners also meets later today. their regularly scheduled nine a-m meeting is set for noon. during it, commissioners are expected to discuss opioid litigation. the resolution declares the opioid cris in pitt county to be a public nuisance.

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Good Morning Carolina

Jan 8, 2018 | WWAY (ABC)

By Wilmington, NC

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796226?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
Rough Transcript: mecklenburg county leaders are taking on opioid manufacturers. a source tells our affiliate station in charlotte that in closed session, commissioners voted to sue opioiddmanufacturers. the county is now finalizing an agreement. in november, wilmington and new hanover county leaders also approved resolutions to take legal action against opioid manufacturers.

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KCRG-TV9 Saturday Morning News at 8

Jan 8, 2018 | KCRG (ABC)

By Cedar Rapids, IA

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796256?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
Rough Transcript: 36 counties across iowa are trying to stop the spread of opioid adiction at the root. these counties filed lawsuits yesterday against drug companies for their marketing of opioids. the lawsuit says companies, including "johnson and johnson," hav promoted that the benefits of prescription opioidsoutweigh the risks. these are the first filings in federal court against pharmaceutical manufacturers that address the opioid crisis. some of the counties included in this lawsuit are polk, delaware, buchanan, and johnson. the polk county atorney said, "the result of the drug manufacturer s' conduct is no different than the results caused by the street dealer." the lawsuits say prescription opioid deaths in iowa have quadrupled in the last 20 years. it says opioid-related emergency room visits have tripled over the last decade. it also says the opioid crisis has put a financial strain on iowans because of excessive opioid prescriptions that lead to addiction. al 104 hyvee pharmacies will now provide information on how people can get help if they're abusing opioids or other substances.

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KETV Newswatch 7 First News Saturday

Jan 6, 2018 | KETV (ABC)

By Omaha, NE

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796263?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
Rough Transcript: 36 iowa counties file a lawsuit against drug companies over the opioid epidemic. officials say pharmaceutical companies aggresively and fraudulently marketed painkillers in a way that created a state of addiction. there were 646 opiod-related deaths in iowa between 2009 and 2014. opioid-related emergency room visits have tripled in the past decade.

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News10 at 7am

Jan 6, 2018 | WTEN (ABC)

By Albany, NY

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796267?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
Rough Transcript: albany county is taking on drug manufacturers for their role in the opioid crisis. county executive daniel mccoy filed federal litigation friday morning. he says the purpose is to hold these companies accountable for their role in deceptive tactics that have resulted in addiction, overdoses and deaths. according to mccoy, opioids generated 11-billion

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News 4 at 5a Saturday

Jan 6, 2018 | WSMV (NBC)

By Nashville, TN

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796278?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
Rough Transcript: to fight the opioid epidimic. it's joining more than 150-cities and counties across the country... suing opioid makers. in a lawsuit filed in federal court... williamson county claims the companies are responsible for overdoses and addiction... of its residents. attorneys anticipate the counties and states that are filing similar lawsuits... will join forces and one judge will end up hearing the case. "basically what we're trying to do is minimize the impact on williamson county and it's citizens to thebest of our ability through this lawsuit." the lawsuit claims the companies... failed to meet obligations and state laws... williamson county attoreney jeff mosley says... the county is seeking damages for the cost of things like... first responders, and reversal medication. as well as some of the other clean-up costs for the epidemic...

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News 12

Jan 5, 2018 | WAGT (NBC)

By August, GA

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796284?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
Rough Transcript: columbus georgia has only a thousand fewer people ving there. but gbi -- says they had 4 opioid related deaths compared to augusta's 24. in some years there were more opioid prescriptions dispensed.. than there are people in the county. i think everyone should be held accountable .. the manufacturers, the doctors, the distributers .. the person taking it. they got to be held accountable for what they do. it's so bad-- that national law firm baron and budd is considering a lawsuit against drug makers and distributors. they want to represent the city of augusta. baron and budd -- represents 190 other counties in similar lawsuits.

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Spectrum News All Evening

Jan 5, 2018 | Spectrum News

By Albany, NY

Video Link: http://app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view/31796298?token=54fab455-fcea-4f52-b962-884b40030ea5
Rough Transcript: has filed a federal lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies for allegedly aggravating the opioid crisis. mccoy says these companies engaged in false product advertising and distributing misleading information regarding the damaging effects of using opioids for longterm medical treatment. mccoy wants to hold these companies accountable for valuing monetary gain over patient well being. albany county executive "they knew they were gettin rich on the backs of people's addictions and on people dying. and to me, that's alarming and someone, i don't care who it is in that company, should be held responsible for this action because they knew at the end of the day what they were doing." the case will be tried in ohio at the federal level alongside other plantiffs with similar cases.

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