The Missouri Attorney General is beginning an investigation into the big pharma opioid epidemic, demanding documents from major pharmaceutical companies.

The investigation will look into whether or not seven companies marketed opioids in a way that pushed the big pharma opioid epidemic even farther along, despite being aware of the serious risk of addiction linked with such drugs.

Seven companies total have been included in Attorney General Josh Hawley’s demand for documents regarding their opioid marketing. The drugmakers that have been targeted in the Missouri  probe are pharmaceutical giants Pfizer, Teva, Mylan, Allergan, Depomed, Insys, and Mallinckrodt.

“Our state faces an urgent public-health crisis brought on by fraud,” said AG Hawley in a statement. “Our investigation into those companies that manufacture and market opioids is ongoing. We must put an end to this crisis as we fight for the thousands of lives endangered by the opioid epidemic.”

While AG Hawley has not yet sued any of these companies, many lawsuits have already been leveled against a slew of major pharmaceutical companies by other states. In California, a lawsuit against Teva and Cephalon over opioid marketing practices has been settled for $1.6 million.

A previous Missouri lawsuit has already been targeted against other opioid drug manufacturers, including Purdue Pharma, Endo Health Solutions, and Janssen Pharmaceuticals. Janssen is a prominent subsidiary of the more well-known pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson. Of the pharmaceutical companies involved in the suit, Hawley said they “carried out a complex, multi-year campaign” to “deliberately misrepresent the addictive risk of opioids.” The current investigation into these other seven companies is intended to determine whether or not these companies acted in a similar manner.

Background of the Big Pharma Opioid Epidemic

Opioid painkillers are often prescribed to treat pain. They actually belong to the same class of drugs as heroin. Their job is to reduce the number of pain signals that the body sends to the brain. Unfortunately, they can end up causing patients to feel an addictive euphoria. Opioid addiction isn’t necessarily something that happens from misuse of the drug—even just taking opioids at the direction of the doctor can quickly lead to addiction, and can ruin people’s lives and put them in danger of serious injuries.

As the big pharma opioid epidemic grows ever more concerning, state attorneys general like Missouri’s AG Hawley have begun looking at pharmaceutical companies themselves, in a similar manner to how the tobacco industry was targeted back in the 1990s.

Opioid abuse can lead to a number of injuries, the most obvious of which is opioid addiction. Other problems include serotonin syndrome, androgen deficiency, adrenal insufficiency, overdose, and even death.

Filing a Big Pharma Opioid Epidemic Lawsuit

Missouri is not the only state taking such action over the big pharma opioid epidemic. Similar lawsuits have been filed against companies from all over the country, including in Ohio, New Hampshire, New York, Chicago, Oregon, and California. Dozens of different opioids are involved in these lawsuits.

If you or someone you love has suffered from an opioid addiction because of a painkiller prescribed by your doctor, you may be able to file a lawsuit. While a lawsuit cannot take away the pain and suffering caused by addiction, it can help to alleviate some of the accompanying financial burden.

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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