DRUGS/POLITICS: “A bipartisan group of states investigating the opioid painkiller industry and the causes of widespread addiction has stepped up its probe with a fresh demand for documents from drugmakers and distributors.
States including New York, California and Tennessee announced the moves, saying a group of 41 attorneys general served subpoenas on manufacturers Endo International PLC, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. , Allergan PLC, and Purdue Pharma.
They also demanded documents from the three companies that account for about 90% of the country’s opioid distribution: AmerisourceBergen Corp. , Cardinal Health, and McKesson Corp…
The investigation marks the latest step in an investigation publicly announced by attorneys general this summer.
States including Ohio and Mississippi have gone further, filing lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies, alleging they misrepresented the addictive risks of their painkillers.”
-Thomas MacMillan, “States Push Ahead With Investigation Into Opioid Painkillers,” The Wall Street Journal online, Sept. 19, 2017 06:05pm