Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Judge In Opioid Litigation Against Drugmakers Likes Proposal Put Forth By Thousands Of Cities, But States Say It Cuts Them Out
Reuters: U.S. Judge Expresses Support For Novel Opioid Settlement Talks Framework
A federal judge on Tuesday expressed support for a novel plan by lawyers representing cities and counties suing drug companies over the U.S. opioid epidemic that would bring every community nationally into their settlement talks despite objections from most states. U.S. District Judge Dan Polster during a hearing in Cleveland, Ohio said that while the idea was unprecedented, it could allow companies accused of fueling the epidemic in nearly 2,000 lawsuits before him an ability to obtain "global peace." (8/7)
The Wall Street Journal: In The Opioid Litigation, It’s Now States V. Cities
When tobacco companies agreed to pay states $206 billion two decades ago to settle litigation over the public-health costs of smoking, cities and counties eagerly awaited their share of the money. For the most part, it never came. Now, in similar litigation seeking to hold the pharmaceutical industry accountable for the opioid crisis, local municipalities aren’t waiting around. Hundreds of cities, counties and Native American tribes have filed lawsuits directly, many suing before state attorneys general went to the courthouse to file their own actions. (Randazzo, 8/6)
Bloomberg: Opioid Distributors Propose $10 Billion To End State Claims
McKesson Corp., Cardinal Health Inc. and AmerisourceBergen Corp. have proposed paying $10 billion to settle claims they helped to fuel the U.S. opioid epidemic -- the first sign of progress in resolving state lawsuits against the drug distributors, according to people familiar with negotiations. The companies, which deliver the majority of prescription medications to U.S. pharmacies, made the verbal proposal as part of talks with a group of state attorneys general, said three people familiar with the offer who asked that their names not be used because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly. (Feeley, 8/6)
Columbus Dispatch: Cardinal Health, 2 Other Drug Distributors Offer $10 Billion To Settle Opioid Suits
Cardinal Health, McKesson and AmerisourceBergen, along with other distributors, shipped a total of 76 billion pain pills over a six-year period starting in 2006, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. The companies deny the governments’ allegations and have advanced dozens of legal and factual defenses, saying they complied with all state and federal laws. (Bloomberg, 8/6)
CQ: States Voice Concerns About Drug Crisis Funding Restrictions
Advocates, grantees and state officials say they need more flexibility to use opioid-related grants to help people with other forms of substance use disorder, such as methamphetamine addiction. Congress cleared bipartisan legislation (PL 115-271) last year to expand opioid use treatment, prevention and enforcement efforts. The federal government spent a record $11 billion over two years on the issue in fiscal 2017 and 2018, according to a Bipartisan Policy Center analysis, and is on track this year to spend around $7.4 billion. (Raman, 8/7)
The Associated Press: Boom In Overdose-Reversing Drug Is Tied To Fewer Drug Deaths
Prescriptions of the overdose-reversing drug naloxone are soaring, and experts say that could be a reason overdose deaths have stopped rising for the first time in nearly three decades. The number of naloxone prescriptions dispensed by U.S. retail pharmacies doubled from 2017 to last year, rising from 271,000 to 557,000, health officials reported Tuesday. (8/6)
Los Angeles Times: Decline In Opioid Deaths Tied To Growing Use Naloxone, CDC Says
“One could only hope that this extraordinary increase in prescribing of naloxone is contributing to that stabilization or even decline of the crisis,” said Katherine Keyes, a drug abuse expert at Columbia University. (Stobbe, 8/6)
Stat: In U.S., 1 Naloxone Dispensed For Every 69 High-Dose Opioid Prescriptions
Prescriptions for naloxone have surged in recent years, as communities struggling with opioid addiction have embraced the overdose-reversing medication. But a new federal report indicates uptake of the antidote is still lagging in much of the country. While the number of naloxone prescriptions doubled from 2017 to 2018, there was still only one dispensed for every 69 high-dose opioid prescriptions, according to the report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which was based on retail pharmacy data. (Joseph, 8/6)
The New York Times: As Scotland’s ‘Trainspotting’ Generation Ages, The Dead Pile Up
Older, long-term opioid users account for much of the problem. Things are expected to only get worse. “We’re seeing diseases that you would associate with old age in a lot of these middle-aged men with a long history of drug use,” said Dr. Carole Hunter, the lead pharmacist for Glasgow Addiction Services. “What your body tolerates at 18 it doesn’t tolerate at 38 or 48.” Drug deaths aren’t new in Scotland. More than two decades ago, the grueling life of addiction in Edinburgh was the subject of the novel-turned-film “Trainspotting.” (McCann, 8/7)
WBUR: Mass. Sheriff Touts Success Of Involuntary Treatment Program Amid Scrutiny Of Section 35
A western Massachusetts sheriff announced Monday he's mounting a fight against efforts to eliminate the involuntary addiction treatment program he runs in his jail. With legislative and legal battles looming over forced addiction treatment in Massachusetts, Hampden County Sheriff Nicholas Cocchi gathered supporters Monday to mark one year since his program at the Ludlow jail began. (Becker, 8/6)
