A top U.S. opioid distributor allegedly blames the government for the rising addiction to opioids found in Native American communities.

McKesson Corp. recently argued that their multi-billion contract with the Department of Veterans Affairs and other federal agencies are to blame for the addiction to opioids currently plaguing Native American communities, according to the Washington Post. Lawyers for the wholesale drug distributors made the argument during litigation brought by Oklahoma-based Cherokee Nation.

McKesson holds a $31 billion, multi-year contract to supply drugs to the Veterans Affairs Department and other federal agencies. “It is clear that the acts for which McKesson (and the other defendants) are being sued occurred while performing its required duties for the VA and because of what it was required to do for the VA, e.g. distribute opioids in and around the alleged Tribal Area,” McKesson’s lawyers argued.

Cherokee Nation sued McKesson and other distributors, forcing the industry to explain how huge amounts of painkillers found their way into certain parts of the country. The lawsuit alleges that suspicious prescriptions were wrongly filled, and federal reporting requirements were not followed. Cherokee Nation argues that the industry failed to prevent the diversion of pain pills into the black marketed and profited from the resulting addiction to opioids that plagues the tribe’s community.

“As a distributor, McKesson only distributes opioid medications to pharmacies that are DEA-registered and state-licensed, and we only distribute in response to orders that pharmacies place – we do not drive demand,” a McKesson spokesperson told the Washington Post.

According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Native Americans experienced 8.4 opioid overdose deaths per 100,000 people in 2014, the highest rate of any group in the United States. The nationwide addition to opioids has become an epidemic, resulting in serious harm to many communities. Children born to opioid dependent mothers are born with drug dependencies, and people are dying all over the country at an alarming rate, with opioid related deaths claiming more lives than car accidents.

Opioid painkillers are drugs in the same class as heroin. They work by reducing the number of pain signals received by the brain and are commonly prescribed to patients for chronic pain. Common prescription opioids include hydrocodone (Vicodin, Lorcet, Lortab, Norco), methadone (Methadose, Diskets, Dolophine), and Oxycodone (OxyContin, Percocet, Endocet, Roxicet).

Although opioids can be effective in managing pain levels, they also produce euphoria which makes them highly addictive. Addiction to opioids can occur when opioids are abused by patients or when doctors wrongfully prescribe them for continued use. Addiction to opioids can lead to serotonin syndrome, androgen deficiency, adrenal insufficiency, overdose, and death.

An estimated 2 million people suffer from opioid abuse, prompting state attorney generals and other advocates to hold drug manufacturers responsible for the sweeping opioid epidemic currently gripping the country. In addition to the Cherokee Nation lawsuit, lawsuits have been filed in Illinois, Mississippi, New York, California, Washington, and Ohio.

Ohio has the highest number of opioid-related overdose deaths in the country and the state’s attorney general recently filed a lawsuit against three pharmaceutical companies. The Ohio lawsuit claims that the companies’ marketing campaigns “trivialize the risks of opioids while overstating the benefits” of their effectiveness at treating chronic pain.

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

If you or a loved one developed an opioid addiction from a prescription painkiller, you may qualify to file an opioid addiction lawsuit or a painkiller addiction class action lawsuit. Get help by filling out the form on this page. It’s absolutely free to participate, so act now!

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