Opioid Lawsuits by State and Local Governments

The people are fighting back against the staggering cost of the opioid epidemic. Beasley Allen is representing multiple local governments in Alabama against both manufacturers and distributors of opioids to hold them responsible for the increased costs related to the opioid crisis. Dozens of cities, counties and states across the nation have filed similar lawsuits.

Additionally, our firm has joined Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall in representing the State of Alabama against Perdue Pharma, one of the largest opioid manufacturers in the country. Marshall is co-chair of the Alabama Opioid Overdose and Addiction Council.

Beasley Allen also joined Attorney General Chris Carr and others on behalf of the State of Georgia in its lawsuit to combat the opioid epidemic.


 

State and Local Governments We Represent

In December 2017, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation ruled that the growing number of opioid lawsuits filed by local governments across the country blaming drug companies and distributors for contributing to the national opioid epidemic would be centralized in a multidistrict litigation (MDL) in the Northern District Court of Ohio under U.S. District Judge Aaron Polster, case number 1:17-md-02804. Since then, the MDL has grown to more than 1,800 lawsuits, and that number is expected to grow even larger in the months to come as new plaintiffs and defendants are added.

As of August 2019, OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma, one of the primary targets in the MDL, and the billionaire family that owns the company, are reportedly negotiating a global settlement. Under the $10-$12 billion agreement, the family would give up ownership of Purdue Pharma and turn it into a public trust, donate its own opioid antidotes and addiction treatments currently under development, pay $3 billion out of pocket, and contribute an additional $1.5 billion from the sale of Mundipharma, another Sackler-owned drug company.

Opioid manufacturers named in these lawsuits include Purdue Pharma LP, Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc., Allergan Inc., and Mallinckrodt LLC. Distributors targeted include Cardinal Health Inc., Amerisource Bergen Corp., and McKesson Corp, as well as units of CVVS Health Corp., and Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

Local governments are accusing the drug makers of overstating the benefits of opioids while downplaying the risks. Distributors are blamed for failing to monitor and report suspicious drug orders to authorities.

Opioid Lawsuits by Injured Individuals

In addition to lawsuits filed on behalf of governments and organizations harmed financially by the opioid crisis, Beasley Allen is working to represent individuals and families that have suffered personal injuries and deaths because of the opioid epidemic.

The opioid epidemic is so pervasive, it is likely nearly everyone knows someone who has been touched by it. Americans – although comprising only 5 percent of the world’s population – consumed 75 percent of the world’s prescription drugs in 2011. Even if they are prescribed for a legitimate medical reason, their high propensity for addiction often leads to their abuse.

Beasley Allen is investigating and handling these cases. Some factual situations our firm would like to investigate as a potential case on behalf of individuals include:

  • Documented prescription opioid use (must be prescribed to the client);
  • The prescribed drug must be an NDA-approved opioid. There are various different brands. These brand names will fall within one of these categories:
    • Fentanyl
    • Oxycodone (e.g., Oxycontin)
    • Propoxyphene (e.g., Darvocet)
    • Morphine
    • Hydromorphone (e.g., Dilaudid)
    • Meperidine (e.g., Demerol)
    • Methadone
    • Hydrocodone
    • Codeine
    • Diphenoxylate

Misuse of opioids has cost thousands of lives. U.S. deaths from drug overdoses increased in 2017 to 63,600, up from 52,000 in 2015. Two-thirds of those drug deaths involved opioids. Both legal and illegal forms of opioids were blamed for a drop in American life expectancy for the second year in a row.

Opioid lawsuits by injured individuals claim that opioid manufacturers and distributors exploited patients, and caused or contributed to the plaintiffs’ (or their loved ones’) addictions to controlled substances, which ultimately led to injury or death.

Beasley Allen is looking at opioid injury claims involving brand-name prescription opioid usage concurrent with one of the following injuries:

  • Death due to overdose
  • Hospitalization due to overdose
  • Hospitalization due to symptoms of overdose
  • Addiction treated with inpatient rehab
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