September 21, 2023
The special master overseeing the massive opioid multidistrict litigation against pharmacy benefit managers OptumRX Inc. and Express Scripts Inc. is fighting a disqualification bid filed following his reply-all flub, telling an Ohio federal judge on Thursday that it is "hokey" but true that every day he reminds himself of the role's "honor and privilege."
September 20, 2023
Pharmacy benefit managers OptumRX Inc. and Express Scripts Inc. called for the disqualification of the special master overseeing multidistrict litigation brought against the PBMs over the national opioid epidemic after he allegedly revealed a bias against them in an email they said he inadvertently sent as a "reply all."
September 12, 2023
Newly released data from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration about prescription opioid sales shows that opioid shipments in 2019 were nearly half of those a decade prior, attorneys in the sweeping opioid litigation said on Tuesday.
August 22, 2023
Walmart revealed in a regulatory filing late Tuesday that it will pay about $2.8 billion of the roughly $3 billion deal it struck to end thousands of lawsuits accusing its nationwide pharmacy network of fueling America's opioid crisis, after an administrator determined enough municipalities have joined the state settlements.
July 14, 2023
The Ohio federal judge steering multidistrict litigation over the opioid crisis on Friday signed off on a subpoena requesting information on national opioid sales from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, saying the data's importance to the litigation "cannot be overstated."
June 15, 2023
Hospitals have asked the Ohio federal judge overseeing opioid multidistrict litigation to name Don Barrett of Barrett Law Group as interim class counsel, saying their claims are distinct from those brought by local governments and his appointment would aid settlement talks.
May 17, 2023
Walgreens Co. has agreed to pay $230 million to San Francisco for its role in the city's opioid epidemic following a landmark weeks-long bench trial last year that found the pharmacy chain liable for distributing thousands of suspicious painkiller prescriptions in the area without proper screenings, the city announced Wednesday.
May 02, 2023
A West Virginia city and county have told the Fourth Circuit that distributors of addictive painkillers misinterpreted state nuisance law and the federal Controlled Substances Act when seeking to uphold a lower court's dismissal of the local governments' multibillion-dollar opioid lawsuit.
April 24, 2023
The top federal judge in multidistrict opioid litigation lashed out Monday against new accusations of using his gavel as a cudgel to bully corporations into settlements, calling the criticism from a major division of UnitedHealth Group Inc. "meritless" and "insulting."
April 11, 2023
A Michigan state judge on Tuesday sanctioned Ottawa County and its outside counsel for filing what she called a frivolous lawsuit challenging a national opioid settlement, ruling the county had an unreasonable interpretation of the deal and that its lawyer lied about who was overseeing the funds.