Three years ago I wrote this column: My Challenge to Medical Device and Drug Companies: Put Me Out of Business! The point was straightforward: if companies would do the right thing, and properly test their medical devices, and carefully monitor the drugs they sell, and try to help patients instead…
Articles Posted in oxycontin
Opioids: Lawsuits Filed by Individual Victims Taking Shape
Most of you have heard reports about the devastating effects of opioids. Millions of people have become addicted, and many of those people have overdosed and died while taking the addictive pain medication. Even in cases when death does not occur, addiction has caused job losses, ravaged families, and cost…
Opioid Lawsuits: Drug Companies Develop Legal Defenses to Avoid Paying Claims
If you have read any newspaper in the last year, you know that prescription opioids have caused massive suffering in this country. Addiction has skyrocketed. Sadly, deaths from overdoses and even opioid-related suicides have dramatically increased as well. In 2016 alone over 14,000 overdose deaths were reported from natural and…
Addicted to Opioids? An Overview of Damages That May Be Recoverable
The opioid epidemic in America is a national crisis. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control recently reported that more than 64,000 people died in 2016 from drug overdoses, with the great majority of those deaths caused by opioids. The numbers for 2017 only look worse. Last month, I wrote about…
Victims of the Opioid Epidemic: Will You Be Able to Sue for Damages?
Have you been directly affected by the opioid epidemic in America? Millions of people have become addicted to these powerful drugs—and for many, that addiction started with a legally prescribed medication to treat legitimate pain. One report estimated that more than 59,000 people died from drug overdoses in 2016—and most…
Opioid Lawsuits Heading to Centralized Multidistrict Litigation (MDL 2804)
I blogged previously about the United States opioid crisis and how many local and state governments were looking to the courts to help deal with it. Specifically, these governments have brought lawsuits against manufacturers and distributors of opioids. When we last wrote about the opioid crisis, I explained how these…
Opioid Epidemic: Is Massive Litigation Inevitable?
Over the past few years, an opioid epidemic has caused horrific problems for many regions of the country. In 2015 alone, the US Department of Health and Human Services estimated that 12.5 million people misused prescription opioids, causing over 33,000 overdose deaths. In 2013, the opioid epidemic resulted in $78.5…