Ohio
Judge to decide how much pharmacies owe over opioid crisis
CLEVELAND (AP) — How much money should CVS, Walgreens and Walmart pharmacies pay two Ohio counties in damages to help them ease the effects of the opioid crisis?
That’s the question in front of a federal judge in Cleveland, who will begin hearing testimony on Tuesday after a jury found the three giant pharmacy chains responsible last fall for recklessly distributing massive amounts of pain pills in Lake and Trumbull counties. It was the first time pharmacies in the U.S. have been held responsible for the opioid crisis.
Plaintiff’s attorneys said before trial that each county needs about $1 billion to repair the damage caused by the flood of pills, which caused hundreds of overdose deaths.
Around 80 million prescription painkillers were dispensed in Trumbull County between 2012 and 2016 — 400 for every county resident — while 61 million pills were dispensed in Lake County during that five-year period — 265 pills for every resident.
Back in November, a jury in U.S. District Judge Dan Polster’s courtroom sided with the counties and agreed that the way the pharmacies dispensed pain medication played an outsized role in creating a public nuisance.
Now, the counties are expected to present testimony from doctors to discuss the harm suffered by those communities, the opioid crisis’ impact on child welfare and other county agencies, and an abatement plan created for the counties.
“The jury sounded a bell that should be heard through all pharmacies in America,” Mark Lanier, the lead attorney for the counties, said after November’s verdict.
Across the U.S., many lawsuits filed by governments over the toll of the drugs have been resolved in recent years — most with settlements, and some with judgments or verdicts in trials. So far, drug makers, distributors and pharmacies have agreed to settlements totaling well over $40 billion, according to an Associated Press tally.
Trials are underway in courts in West Virginia, Florida and California. A decision has not yet been issued after another trial last year in West Virginia.
According to an April 25 court filing, the abatement plan created for Lake and Trumbull counties by Dr. Caleb Alexander of John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, “are reasonable and necessary to abate the public nuisance found by the jury.”
The plan focuses on prevention, treatment, recovery and “measures intended to specifically address the needs of special populations who have been uniquely affected by the opioid epidemic,” the court filing said.
Attorneys for Walgreens and Walmart argued in a court filing that the counties’ $878 million abatement plan should be limited to one year and not the minimum of five years the counties argue they need. One of the pharmacy chains’ experts has estimated the actual cost at $346 million while another expert said it’s less than $35 million, the filing said.
Defense attorneys also argued that damage caused by other entities who contributed to the public nuisance of opioid addiction should be excluded from any amounts awarded by Polster and that those costs should be limited to the pharmacies’ “appropriate share of contribution to the nuisance.”
Pharmacy chain Rite-Aid settled with the counties in early October before the start of trial. Pittsburgh-based Giant Eagle reached a settlement with the counties in late October after the trial started.
There were nearly 500,000 deaths caused by legal and illegal opioids between 2000 and 2019, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
New York
State to direct $35M to abortion providers if Roe overturned
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Tuesday that New York will make $35 million available to help abortion providers boost services and security if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns the landmark Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide.
The Democrat said the state has to get ready for a potential influx of out-of-state patients seeking abortions from states that ban the procedure.
Hochul said she’ll use an emergency Department of Health fund to provide grants and reimbursements to abortion providers, including $25 million for increasing access to services and $10 million for security upgrades at a time when the governor said abortion providers are facing low staffing levels and fears over their providers’ safety.
A leaked Supreme Court draft opinion that would throw out the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion rights ruling has spurred Democratic leaders in several states to consider steps to increase access to abortion services. A final ruling is not expected until the end of the court’s term in late June or early July.
In February, Oregon launched a $15 million fund to provide grants to Oregon nonprofits to expand access to abortions. In Vermont, voters this fall will consider an abortion rights amendment to the state constitution.
Hochul is also backing a proposed state constitutional amendment to guarantee abortion rights in New York.
Illinois
Chicago providing $500K to expand access to abortion
CHICAGO (AP) — The city of Chicago is providing $500,000 to increase access to abortion, particularly for poor people and people of color, as the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to end the nationwide right to legal abortion.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Monday that the money will go to providers as well as organizations such as the Chicago Abortion Fund and Midwest Access Coalition, which provide lodging, transportation, meals and other support to people seeking abortions. Funding will be available for Chicago residents and people from across the U.S.
A draft Supreme Court opinion leaked last week suggested the court would overturn the landmark 1973 decision, Roe v. Wade.
“So we’ve got to be ready, and we’ve got to step up,” Lightfoot said.
Chicago and Illinois already have been seen an increase in the number of people from out-of-state seeking abortions because it is surrounded by states that have restricted access in recent years. If the court rules as expected, Planned Parenthood of Illinois is preparing to see double to five times the number of patients it currently sees for abortion care, said Jennifer Welch, the organization’s president and CEO.
“Millions of people will find themselves in a vast abortion desert,” Welch said. “And that’s where Illinois comes in as the oasis for care.”
Lightfoot said the $500,000, which comes from the city’s Department of Public Health and Environment budget, may increase in future years.
