CVS, Walgreens and Walmart Continuing Opioid Crisis, Jury Findings


In a closely watched test case, a federal jury in Cleveland found Tuesday that three of the nation’s largest pharmacy chains, CVS Health, Walmart, and Walgreens, contributed significantly to the opioid overdose and death crisis in two Ohio states. The retail sector of the pharmaceutical industry has been blamed for the epidemic that has been going on for decades.

The trial judge will determine how much each company can pay the counties after hearings that are not yet scheduled. New federal data published last week shows overdose deaths from illicit opioids like heroin and street fentanyl It reached record levels during the pandemic.

The verdict, the first of the jury’s verdict in an opioid case, is based on the same legal strategy used in this case in thousands of cases across the country, namely a drug company’s decision. “public nuisance” — a legal term that plaintiffs claim covers the public health crisis posed by opioids.

The same argument has been denied twice this month. California and Oklahoma lawsuits against opioid manufacturers who decided that the companies’ activities were far from overdoses and deaths; and public harm law this app stretched beyond recognition.

But in this case brought by Lake and Trumbull counties in northeastern Ohio, lawyers have successfully used legal theory, arguing that over the years, pharmacies have turned a blind eye to countless red flags about questionable opioid orders, both at the local counter and with patients. It’s at corporate headquarters that “too little, too late” has oversight requirements, according to Mark Lanier, the county’s leading litigation attorney.



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