The mayor of a Philadelphia suburb has filed an opioid crisis lawsuit against over a dozen pharmaceutical companies, alleging they have at least partial responsibility for the rising addiction problem.

This suburb will be the first Pennsylvania municipality to file an opioid crisis lawsuit, claiming the rise of opioid-related crimes and overdoses were due to the pharmaceutical companies allegedly withholding vital drug safety information.

Mayor Joseph DiGirolamo of Bensalem stated its residents are greatly impacted by the cost of opioid crimes and that attorneys involved are not charging any money to taxpayers of the suburb. The opioid crisis lawsuit named Purdue Pharma, Teva Pharmaceuticals, Johnson & Johnson, and Cephalon and Endo as defendants, which are facing the accusations of over 60,000 residents.

“The charge to the Bensalem taxpayers has been what they have been paying for all that we have done with our police and our [emergency medical services]. [T]ens of millions of dollars have been spent by our community because of this drug,” DiGirolamo said.

Overview of Opioid Crisis Lawsuit

Director of Public Safety Fred Harran states that the opioid crisis has been especially hard on the Philadelphia city line in Bucks County, stating there was an overdose rate of 556% from 2006 to 2017 and a 156% increase during that passing year.

Harran stated the attorneys involved are still calculating the total cost the opioid crisis accumulated but are already estimating the amount to be around $200 million. A portion of the costs will go to emergency medical service, with the cost nearing $1.05 million in the last three years.

The area of Bensalem had only collected $258,000 from insurance companies, leaving taxpayers to pay the remaining $750,000.

State Representative Gene DiGirolamo, also called R-Bucks, noted Bensalem was the first municipality to file an opioid crisis lawsuit in the state to go after pharmaceutical companies for this negligence.

DiGirolamo is hoping other parts of state follow suit, and that the opioid crisis needs attention to help victims and patients undergoing treatment. Potential opioid addiction-related injuries include, but are not limited to:

• Addiction
• Overdose or Death
• Serotonin Syndrome: Occurs when serotonin levels are too high, leading to severe fevers and muscle stiffness.
• Androgen Deficiency: Occurs when there are insufficient androgen levels, which affects the patient’s sex drive and functionality.
• Adrenal Insufficiency: Occurs when the adrenal glands cannot produce sufficient cortisol, a hormone vital for cardiovascular functioning, and also affects blood pressure and metabolism.

According to the Bucks County District Attorney, the township had tried other strategies to battle the opioid crisis but issues with overprescription and immediate availability made for a difficult struggle.

He further stated that drug companies either knew or should have known about the addictive nature of opioids and that the companies had concealed this information to protect profit margins.

A number of states, cities, and counties have been examining the potential relationship between pharmaceutical companies and the opioid crisis with different claims pending in Ohio, California, New York, New Hampshire, Oregon and Illinois, and other states.

Patients who may have developed addiction due to opioids may be able to file their own opioid crisis lawsuit. Potential claimants should contact a lawyer to determine eligibility for a claim.

In general, opioid addiction lawsuits are filed individually by each plaintiff and are not class actions.

Do YOU have a legal claim? Fill out the form on this page now for a free, immediate, and confidential case evaluation. The attorneys who work with Top Class Actions will contact you if you qualify to let you know if an individual opioid addictino lawsuit or opioid addiction class action lawsuit is best for you. Hurry — statutes of limitations may apply.

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