Growing Trend: Another State Sues Opioid Manufacturers & Distributors
While the country’s current opioid crisis gains more and more exposure, there seems to be a pattern of action developing across multiple states and local governments. Lawsuits against opioid manufacturers and wholesale distributors are becoming more and more common. There have been a slew of cases against drug makers filed by states including Oklahoma, Mississippi, Ohio, Missouri, New Hampshire and South Carolina. Many more have been filed by numerous cities and counties in states such as Illinois, New York, California and West Virginia.
The most recent state to jump on this band wagon is New Mexico, which filed suits against eight of the major players in the opioid market, including:
- Purdue Pharma LP
- Johnson & Johnson
- Allergan Plc
- Endo International Plc
- Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd
According to Reuters Health reports, the New Mexico Attorney General accused these companies of “pushing addictive painkillers through deceptive marketing.” They also accused specific wholesale distributors of failing to “monitor, detect and report suspicious orders of prescription opioids” – these included McKesson Corp, Cardinal Health Inc. and AmerisourceBergen Corp.
New Mexico is seeking damages for costs incurred as a result of the epidemic, in attempts to hold these drug makers responsible for their part in creating and/or furthering the opioid crisis. However, in similar cases, drug companies have not admitted fault and maintained that they followed responsible marketing practices by having the FDA-approved labels on each drug which clearly warn about the risks.
Although the outcome of the New Mexico lawsuits are yet to be determined, the pattern of states and local governments taking action against drug makers appears to be a trend that is not going away anytime soon. For additional details on this issue and to read the full article, click here.
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