opioid epidemic News

Oxycontin Maker Purdue Nears Guilty Plea Agreement in U.S. Criminal Probe-Sources

NEW YORK — Purdue Pharma LP, the OxyContin maker controlled by members of the wealthy Sackler family, is nearing an agreement to plead guilty to criminal charges as part of a broader deal to resolve U.S. Justice Department probes into …

States Seek $2.2 Trillion From Oxycontin Maker Purdue Pharma

NEW YORK — U.S. states claimed they are owed $2.2 trillion to address harm from OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP’s alleged role in America’s opioid epidemic, accusing the drugmaker in new filings of pushing prescription painkillers on doctors and patients …

New York Charges Drugmaker Endo with Insurance Fraud Over Opioid Claims

New York state filed civil charges on Wednesday accusing Endo International Plc of insurance fraud for misrepresenting the safety and efficacy of its opioid drugs, adding fuel to the nation’s opioid crisis. Governor Andrew Cuomo said the charges brought by …

Mallinckrodt Agrees to $1.6 Billion Opioid Settlement, Unit to File Chapter 11

Mallinckrodt Plc said on Tuesday its specialty generic unit would file for bankruptcy after agreeing to pay $1.6 billion over eight years to settle opioid-related lawsuits globally, sending the drugmaker’s shares up 48%. The settlement was reached with a court-appointed …

Purdue’s Sacklers Ask to Publish Defense to Clear Their Name

Purdue Pharma LP’s billionaire owners went on the offensive against what they call unfair press treatment that’s based on the false assumption they helped trigger the U.S. opioid epidemic. The Sackler family, whose bankrupt company developed the OxyContin painkiller, asked …

Supreme Court Rejects Arizona Opioid Case Against Purdue, Sackler Family

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday turned away a novel case by Arizona seeking to recover billions of dollars that the state has said that members of the Sackler family — owners of Purdue Pharma LP — funneled out of …

Judge Shields Oxycontin-Maker Purdue From Litigation Until April

Purdue Pharma LP and the company’s Sackler family owners will be shielded until April 8, 2020, from sprawling opioid litigation to give the maker of OxyContin time to try to reach a legal settlement the company says is worth $10 …

Drug Distributor Reckitt to Pay $700 Million Over Opioid Marketing

Drug distributor Reckitt Benckiser Group agreed to a $700 million settlement with six U.S. states over claims that the company improperly marketed and promoted the opioid-addiction treatment Suboxone. The marketing resulted in state Medicaid funds being improperly spent on the …

$50 Billion Opioid Settlement Bid Sparks States-Cities Fight

About $50 billion in settlement offers by drugmakers and distributors have sparked a fight between state attorneys general and thousands of local governments over how much the pharmaceutical industry should pay for its role in creating the U.S. opioid epidemic. …

Drug Wholesalers, Teva Settle With Ohio Counties Over Opioids

The three largest U.S. drug distributors and a major generic-drug manufacturer have agreed to pay $260 million to settle the first federal trial over the companies’ role in fueling the U.S. opioid epidemic. Drug distributors McKesson Corp., Cardinal Health Inc. …