In first-of-their-kind lawsuits filed across five states, prescription opioid makers and distributors are being targeted for an increase in health insurance premiums, Bloomberg reports.
Here are six things to know.
1. The suits seek unspecified damages for people who purchased health insurance policies in those five states going back to 1996. The suits open another front in litigation against several large drugmakers, including Purdue Pharma and the Janssen Pharmaceuticals unit of Johnson & Johnson and distributors such as McKesson Corp. and Cardinal Health.
2. "All of the defendants in this action share responsibility for creating, sustaining and prolonging the opioid epidemic" in pursuit of corporate revenue, lead plaintiff Edward Grace alleged in a May 2 complaint filed in Boston.
3. The plaintiffs' lawyer Travis Lenkner Similar said similar cases have popped up in New Jersey, New York, Illinois and California, and a group of firms he works with considers these suits to be the first over insurance premiums.
4. The companies are accused of conspiring, racketeering and creating a public nuisance. Since 1999, opioid abuse has killed over 350,000 people, costing private businesses and governmental bodies roughly $500 billion each year, Bloomberg noted.
5. Additionally, the Boston suit named opioid manufacturers as defendants, including Teva Pharmaceuticals and AmerisourceBergen. The drug manufacturers said they are attempting to address the opioid crisis.
6. "Our actions in the marketing and promotion of these medicines were appropriate and responsible," Janssen Pharmaceuticals said in an emailed statement to Bloomberg. "The allegations made against our company are baseless and unsubstantiated." Purdue Pharma and McKesson Corp. officials expressed concern over opioid abuse and noted their individual efforts to help solve the issue, according to Bloomberg.