Everett considering lawsuit against painkiller manufacturer
http://komonews.com/news/local/everett-considering-lawsuit-against-painkiller-manufacturer
EVERETT, Wash. – The city of Everett is considering a lawsuit against the manufacturer of the powerful painkiller OxyContin.
Everett Mayor Ray Stephanson is asking the City Council on Wednesday to support a civil lawsuit against Purdue Pharma. He says the drug manufacturer needs to be held accountable for a surge in overdose deaths in the community and others problems.
The Daily Herald says the case would argue that Purdue Pharma was negligent when it aggressively marketed the drug as less addictive than other pain medication while ignoring evidence that the painkillers were diverted to illegal drug traffickers.
In 2007, Purdue Pharma and its executives paid more than $630 million in legal penalties for willfully misrepresenting the drug’s addiction risks.
The Connecticut-based company said in an email Wednesday that it shares public officials’ concerns about the opioid crisis and is committed to working collaboratively to find solutions.
“Although OxyContin accounts for only 2 percent of all pain-related opioid prescriptions, Purdue is an industry leader in abuse deterrence as we were the first pharmaceutical company to develop an opioid medication with abuse-deterrent properties,” the company said in a prepared statement
Filed under: General Problems
These people r just stuck on stupid. Everett has a huge heroin problem. They know we’re the homeless r that r using them and they know who the dealers r, but they do nothing. Instead it is EASIER to blame pain meds.
Uneducated and miss informed people truly amaze me. Assuming a substance is the cause of a problem without substantial evidence is totally ignorant. We need to watch this case and it’s results closely. A lot of different avenues for action can be opened up for the pain community if this city wins this suit.