Judge Denies Motion to Dismiss in Florida Opioid Litigation

Submitted by Nancy Smith on April 2, 2019 - 6:49pm

Attorney General Ashley Moody marked another victory in the legal battle to hold the nation’s largest opioid manufacturers, distributors and sellers responsible for their role in the national opioid crisis. Following a hearing in Pasco County Tuesday, Circuit Judge Declan Mansfield denied the defendants’ motion to dismiss the state’s litigation.

Ashley Moody

Said Moody, “Today’s ruling by Judge Mansfield marks another victory in our fight to end the national opioid crisis claiming 17 lives a day in Florida. Our litigation seeks to hold responsible the major corporations that profited off the pain and suffering of Floridians and to ensure it never happens again.”

The Florida Attorney General’s Office is suing opioid manufacturers Purdue Pharma L.P., Endo Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Cephalon, Inc., Insys Therapeutics, Inc., and Allergan and related companies; opioid distributors AmerisourceBergen Drug Corporation, Cardinal Health, Inc., McKesson Corporation, and Mallinckrodt LLC and related companies; and pharmacies Walgreens Co., CVS Healthcare Corp., and CVS Pharmacy, Inc.

To view the complaint, click here.

To view the amended complaint, click here.

Moody’s office is fighting the national opioid crisis on multiple fronts. Florida’s opioid litigation is just one of many ongoing efforts. The attorney general was just named Chair of Florida’s Statewide Task Force on Opioid Drug Abuse. For more information on the task force, click here.

On Monday Moody joined 39 other attorneys general "in an effort to push back against a dangerous federal proposal to loosen opioid prescribing guidelines," her office said. For more information on the ongoing efforts, click here.

Before Florida’s legislative session began, Moody’s Opioid Abuse Working Group released its final report highlighting recommendations and best practices for fighting the opioid crisis. To read the full report, Florida’s Opioid Epidemic: Recommendations and Best Practices, click here.

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