Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Different Takes: Judgment Against Johnson & Johnson In Opioid Lawsuit Provides Moment Of Hope
CNN: Oklahoma Opioid Ruling Is A Very Good Start
For two years, the state of Oklahoma prepared a case against major pharmaceutical companies, charging that they played a key role in the rise of the opioid problem across the state. This has raised national debates over whether and how private companies selling legal products can be found liable for the damage those products and their business practices inflict. In Monday's ruling in Norman, Oklahoma, Judge Thad Balkman provided his answer, ruling against Johnson & Johnson, and ordered the company to pay the state $572 million to help the state prepare abatement programs. Finally having companies found liable for their actions is cathartic and important. The hard work addressing the issue of addiction, though, clearly still lies ahead. (Holly M. Karibo, 8/26)
Stat: Lost Lives And Long Odds: Inside STAT's Decision To Take On Purdue
Last month, I got an email from a dear old friend from Kentucky with devastating news. Her daughter Kathryn had died of an opioid overdose. I was stunned, though perhaps I shouldn’t have been. I knew she had long struggled with addiction: A talented artist and writer, she was prescribed an opioid for wrist pain at 19, and that’s all it took. Eventually, she began using heroin, and now she had overdosed on fentanyl. It’s the same tragic path tens of thousands of other young Americans have traveled. (Gideon Gil, 8/26)
The Wall Street Journal: An Oklahoma Opioid Stickup
The ruling Monday by an Oklahoma judge that Johnson & Johnson must pay $572 million for selling opioids will be cheered by everyone who wants a scapegoat for the scourge of addiction. But the ruling could have far larger, and more dangerous, consequences by opening a vast new arena for product-liability suits. More than 2,000 states and municipalities have sued opioid makers and distributors in federal litigation in Ohio. Another 250 or so have filed lawsuits in state courts where they hope local judges and juries will provide a more sympathetic audience. Most like Oklahoma GOP Attorney General Mike Hunter have been aided by private plaintiff attorneys. (8/26)
