opioid News

Purdue’s Sackler Owners Propose Up to $6 Billion Opioid Settlement

The Sackler family owners of Purdue Pharma LP have proposed a new and larger settlement worth up to $6 billion to resolve allegations that the OxyContin maker and its owners contributed to the deadly U.S. opioid epidemic, a mediator’s report …

New York Charges Mallinckrodt with Insurance Fraud Over Opioid Claims

New York state brought civil charges on Tuesday accusing Mallinckrodt Plc of insurance fraud for misrepresenting the safety and efficacy of its opioid drugs, leading to medically unnecessary prescriptions. Governor Andrew Cuomo said the charges brought by New York’s Department …

Wyoming’s Opioid-Related Deaths Low, But Still A Concern

Opioid abuse and related deaths in Wyoming have not reached the crisis levels of some other states, but remain a serious concern. The Wyoming Tribune Eagle reported a 2018 lawsuit filed by Wyoming against Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin, …

Growing Number of Municipal Suits Over Opioids Face Uphill Battle

A growing number of U.S. states, counties and cities are filing lawsuits accusing drug companies of deceptively marketing opioid painkillers to downplay their addictiveness, but some lawyers say the industry’s highly regulated nature could pose a hurdle to their success. …

Pennsylvania Lawmakers Start Debating Medical Marijuana Bill

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives took up a proposal this week to permit the use of marijuana for medical purposes, a potential breakthrough for supporters who have worked for several years to get legalization through the Republican-controlled Legislature. The debate …

CDC Issues Opioid Prescription Guideline for Primary Care Doctors

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued new recommendations for prescribing opioid medications for chronic pain. The “CDC Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain, United States, 2016” was developed in response to an epidemic of prescription …

California Governor Signs Workers’ Comp Formulary Bill

California Gov. Jerry Brown has signed a bill to move California forward in curbing abuse of opioid medications in the workers’ compensation system. Assembly Bill 1124, authored by Assemblyman Henry T. Perea, D-Fresno, requires the Division of Workers Compensation to …

Opioid Abuse Rises in Construction, Manufacturing Sectors: CNA

CNA recently issued two new reports that examine the growing prescription opioid abuse epidemic and its effect on the U.S. workforce, focusing on the construction and manufacturing industries, which are particularly at risk for such abuse. The reports, Construction: Prescription …

Texas, Oklahoma Battle Opioids With Legislation

Editor’s Note: This is part of a team report on opioid use by injured workers. For the national story read: Opioid Epidemic Plagues Workers’ Comp In the South Central region, Texas and Oklahoma are two states where the battle against …

Injured Workers Opioid Use on Rise in California, Washington

Editor’s Note: This is part of a team report on opioid use by injured workers. For the national story read: Opioid Epidemic Plagues Workers’ Comp Washington and California are among states in the U.S. Western Region that have publicly struggled …