At least six pharmaceutical companies in the United States that are involved in distributing or producing opioid painkillers are facing a federal criminal investigation over their alleged role in contributing to the national overdose crisis. The existence of the probe, first reported by The Wall Street Journal on Nov. 26, is in the early stages […]
Opioid Epidemic Cost U.S. Economy $631 Billion over 4 Years…
The opioid crisis in the United States has cost the economy at least $631 billion in just four years, according to a report released earlier this week by the Society of Actuaries, who analyzed non-medical opioid use during this time frame. Most of the costs were attributable to healthcare and premature mortality. Nearly one-third of […]
McKesson Corp., AmerisourceBergen Corp., and Cardinal Health to Pay $18B to Settle Opioid Lawsuits…
Top drug distributors are in discussions to pay $18billion to settle opioid lawsuits, according to reports. McKesson Corp., AmerisourceBergen Corp. and Cardinal Health Inc. would pay the money back over 18 years under the proposed deal, sources told The Wall Street Journal. The litigation was brought by state and local governments who blamed the companies […]
Federal Judge Rules Claims Against Drugmakers Over Opioid Crisis Can Proceed to Trial…
A U.S. district judge ruled Tuesday that claims against drug companies over the opioid epidemic can go to trial, even as Purdue Pharma moves toward offering a settlement to those impacted. U.S. District Judge Dan Polster, who is overseeing about 2,000 opioid lawsuits by state and local governments against drug manufacturers, pharmaceutical companies, and other […]
My God, They Are Trying to Kill Us!: 76 Billion Opioid Pills – Newly Released Federal Data Unmasks the Epidemic…
America’s largest drug companies saturated the country with 76 billion oxycodone and hydrocodone pain pills from 2006 through 2012 as the nation’s deadliest drug epidemic spun out of control, according to previously undisclosed company data released as part of the largest civil action in U.S. history. The information comes from a database maintained by the […]
China Bans All Types of Fentanyl …
China has banned all forms of the opioid fentanyl, following a promise President Xi Jinping made to President Donald Trump last year, The New York Times reports. Much of the world’s fentanyl is believed to be made in China, and the drug increasingly became a point of contention between the U.S. and China as fentanyl-related […]
New York AG Sues Purdue Pharma, J&J, McKesson in New Legal Battle Against Opioid Manufacturers and Distributors…
DEA-Led Crackdown on Prescription Opioid Diversion Targets Medical Professionals with Criminal Charges, License Revocations…
‘We feel like our system was hijacked’: DEA Agents Say a Huge Opioid Case Ended in a Whimper…
After two years of painstaking investigation, David Schiller and the rest of the Drug Enforcement Administration team he supervised were ready to move on the biggest opioid distribution case in U.S. history. The team, based out of the DEA’s Denver field division, had been examining the operations of the nation’s largest drug company, McKesson Corp. […]