AG Ferguson sues Johnson & Johnson -- 'unique role' in opioid epidemic
The state of Washington is suing Johnson & Johnson, charging the pharmaceutical giant with producing opioid painkillers, supplying addictive ingredients, developing opium poppy plants, and serving as a "driving" force in an addiction epidemic/overdose that has killed 8,000 people in Washington.
The suit by Attorney General Bob Ferguson accuses Johnson & Johnson of mounting a "deceptive marketing campaign" in convincing physicians that opioids were effective in treating pain, and that one of its products, Nucynta, was less addictive than other opioid pain medications.
"Johnson and Johnson played a unique role in the proliferation of opioids in Washington and around the nation," AG Ferguson told a news conference, flanked by three parents who lost offspring to the epidemic.
The state wants Johnson & Johnson, in Ferguson's words, to "give up the profits it has made due to its illegal conduct," money that would be used to treat an epidemic that has hit both urban and rural Washington.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/ag-ferguson-sues-johnson-and-johnson-unique-role-in-opioid-epidemic/ar-BBYyL1K
