Ohio Sues Opioid Manufacturers
By Jonathan Springston, Editor, AHC Media
Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine on Wednesday filed a lawsuit against five manufacturers of prescription opioid pills, alleging that misleading marketing tactics on the part of those companies regarding associated risks has led to a statewide health crisis.
The suit accuses Purdue Pharma, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (and its subsidiary Cephalon), Johnson & Johnson (and its subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceuticals), Endo Health Solutions, and Allergan of violating the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act by spreading false and misleading information that oversold the benefits of their products while significantly downplaying the risks. The companies are accused of using advertising in medical journals and other outlets to spread this message, which the attorney general says has sparked an opioid epidemic in Ohio.
"We believe the evidence will also show that these companies got thousands and thousands of Ohioans -- our friends, our family members, our co-workers, our kids -- addicted to opioid pain medications, which has all too often led to use of the cheaper alternatives of heroin and synthetic opioids. These drug manufacturers led prescribers to believe that opioids were not addictive, that addiction was an easy thing to overcome, or that addiction could actually be treated by taking even more opioids," DeWine said in a statement. "They knew they were wrong, but they did it anyway -- and they continue to do it. Despite all evidence to the contrary about the addictive nature of these pain medications, they are doing precious little to take responsibility for their actions and to tell the public the truth."
Among other remedies, the attorney general seeks monetary penalties and an injunction to halt the alleged deceptive practices. Ohio joins other states, cities, and counties who have filed or are considering filing similar suits. In May, Orange County, NY, sued a group of pharmaceutical companies over the issue.
Last year, AHC Media released a special report, The Opioid Epidemic: New Policies, Treatments, and Non-Opioid Alternatives, a guide for physicians and nurses seeing and treating patients with chronic pain that detailed not only the latest policies and guidelines from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Department of Health and Human Services on opioid prescribing, but also exploring alternatives to opioids for chronic pain.