Judge Expected To Rule Today In Oklahoma Opioid Case Over What Role Drugmakers Played In Epidemic
The decision from Cleveland County District Judge Thad Balkman is expected this afternoon. The case is closely watched as a bellwether for other pending litigation against drugmakers. Meanwhile, investigators are starting to utilize data to combat the opioid crisis, new information emerges about a company the DEA once referred to as the "kingpin within the prescription drug cartel," and scientists look at how gender plays a role in pain.
The Associated Press:
Oklahoma Judge To Deliver Judgment In State's Opioid Lawsuit
An Oklahoma judge is expected to rule Monday in the first state case to go to trial accusing an opioid drugmaker of being responsible for the devastating consequences arising from addiction to the powerful painkillers. Cleveland County District Judge Thad Balkman is scheduled to deliver his judgment in open court at 3 p.m. The case is at the forefront of a wave of similar lawsuits by states, cities, counties and Indian tribes against drug companies over the wreckage caused by the national opioid crisis. (Murphy, 8/26)
CNN:
Opioid Trial Judge Could Deliver Biggest Judgment In US History
It is the first state trial attempting to hold a pharmaceutical company accountable for one of the worst epidemics in history. The state has asked for nearly $17.2 billion to fix the epidemic over a 30-year plan. If Balkman sides entirely with the state, the verdict would be the biggest monetary award handed down in a bench trial in American history. (Drash and Howard, 8/26)
The Washington Post:
Q&A: Deadly Opioid Crisis Sparks Lawsuits Across The US
The first judgment is expected Monday in a lawsuit from a state government seeking to hold a drug company accountable for a U.S. opioid crisis that has ripped apart lives and communities. More trials and legal settlements are likely to follow the ruling in Oklahoma as the nation looks for answers and solutions to a massive societal and legal problem. Following are questions and answers about the opioid crisis. (Mulvihill, 8/25)
PBS NewsHour:
Tracking The Flow Of Opioids Across America
The manufacturers and distributors of opioid prescription painkillers have supplied billions of pills throughout the U.S. An investigative series by The Washington Post looks at the opioid epidemic through the DEA's newly public database that tracks every pain pill sold to pharmacies across the country. Steven Rich, The Post's data editor, joins Hari Sreenivasan with more. (8/25)
The Wall Street Journal:
Investigators Use New Strategy To Combat Opioid Crisis: Data Analytics
When federal investigators got a tip in 2015 that a health center in Houston was distributing millions of doses of opioid painkillers, they tried a new approach: look at the numbers. State and federal prescription and medical billing data showed a pattern of overprescription, giving authorities enough ammunition to send an undercover Drug Enforcement Administration agent. She found a crowded waiting room and armed security guards. After a 91-second appointment with the sole doctor, the agent paid $270 at the cash-only clinic and walked out with 100 10mg pills of the powerful opioid hydrocodone. (Tau and Viswanatha, 8/26)
The Wall Street Journal:
New Details Emerge Over Mallinckrodt’s Role In Opioid Crisis
In July 2010, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration met with Mallinckrodt, informing the pharmaceutical company that the agency viewed it “as the kingpin within the prescription drug cartel.” Now, more details and questions about Mallinckrodt’s role in the opioid crisis are emerging, including whether it effectively guarded against products leaving legal distribution channels as required by law. Much attention over the sprawling opioid litigation against the pharmaceutical industry has targeted Purdue Pharma LP and its prescription pain pill OxyContin, which has sold more than $35 billion since launching in 1996. (Hopkins and Walker, 8/25)
NPR:
Women May Be More Adept Than Men At Discerning Pain
The pathway to opioid abuse for women often starts with a prescription from the doctor's office. One reason is that women are more likely than men to seek help for pain. Pain researchers say not only do women suffer more painful conditions, they actually perceive pain more intensely than men do. "The burden of pain is substantially greater for women than men," says researcher and psychologist Roger Fillingim, "and that led pain researchers like myself to wonder if the pain perception system is different in women than in men." (Neighmond, 8/26)
