opioid crisis News

Experts Urge Better Access to Opioid Rescue Drugs to Save Lives in Georgia

Jessie Blanchard started small nearly five years ago, just trying to get enough of the rescue drug naloxone that reverses opioid overdoses to keep her daughter from dying from an overdose. She pleaded with colleagues at the college where she’s …

New York Jury Finds Drugmaker Teva Liable for Fueling Opioid Crisis

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. fueled opioid addiction in New York state, a jury found last Thursday, a setback for a company still facing thousands of other opioid-related lawsuits around the United States. The verdict, which followed a nearly six-month New …

Opioid Scripts Decreased But Fatal Overdoses Increased. Doctors Urge New Approach.

Doctors with the American Society of Anesthesiologists are calling for a new approach to fighting the opioid crisis, one that goes beyond current efforts at restricting opioid prescribing to reducing demand and addressing the “illicit” opioids in medicine cabinets. To …

Judge Questions California Counties’ Opioid Case Against Drugmakers

A California judge on Thursday said several large counties accusing four drugmakers of fueling an opioid epidemic had presented a “dearth of evidence” during a multi-billion dollar trial to support finding the companies’ pain pill marketing caused the health crisis. …

Big Pharmacy Chains Under Pressure to Settle Opioid Claims Before Their First Trial

Four large pharmacy chains are set to face their first trial over the deadly U.S. opioid epidemic, creating new pressure to reach settlements with state and local governments who accuse them of contributing to the public health crisis. The Ohio …

3 Largest Opioid Distributors to Pay Native American Tribe $75M to Settle Claims

The three largest U.S. drug distributors will pay more than $75 million to resolve claims they fueled an opioid epidemic in the Cherokee Nation’s territory in Oklahoma, marking the first settlement with a tribal government in the litigation over the …

Drug Distributors Signal $26B Opioid Settlement with States to Proceed

Three large U.S. drug distributors and drugmaker Johnson & Johnson will proceed with a proposed $26 billion settlement resolving claims that they fueled the opioid epidemic after “enough” states joined in, the companies said on Saturday. The companies had until …

Ruling on Purdue Pharma Bankruptcy and Opioid Settlement Delayed Until Next Week

A U.S. judge said on Thursday he now anticipates a ruling on OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP’s bankruptcy reorganization plan on Wednesday of next week instead of this week because he needs more oral argument on certain issues. U.S. Bankruptcy …

Bankruptcy Judge Says Purdue Pharma’s Sacklers Face ‘Substantial’ Liability Risk

The judge overseeing Purdue Pharma’s bankruptcy said on Monday that some members of the Sackler family who own the OxyContin maker face a “substantial risk” of liability and could be on the hook for “huge amounts of money” over claims …

At Deadline, 6 States Had Not Joined $26B Opioid Settlements with Distributors, J&J

At least six U.S. states, including Georgia, have decided they will not fully sign on to a proposed $26 billion settlement with three drug distributors and Johnson & Johnson, which have been accused of fueling the nation’s opioid epidemic, according …