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A partner of the Studstill Firm, LLP, Haynes M. Studstill, is representing the City of Moultrie, GA in a nationwide lawsuit against opioid manufacturers and distributors.
Moultrie will be joining hundreds of other Georgia cities and counties in a case that is currently housed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. About 200 lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies were consolidated in 2017, forming the now-cross-country litigation that has grown to include over 1,500 suits, including those filed by the attorneys general of 44 states. Areas that have lost countless lives and resources to the opioid crisis continue to join the legal battle against drug manufacturers.
The lawsuits focus on Purdue Pharma, the company that introduced Oxycontin to the market in 1996. Multiple plaintiffs in the suits, including every involved state other than Kansas, are suing Purdue Pharma’s former president Richard Sackler as well for his knowledge and role in the scheme.
The basis of the litigation is not only Purdue Pharma’s creation of the highly-addictive painkiller — plaintiffs are suing for the advertising strategies and negligent distribution practices that allowed opioids to permeate American cities and disrupt the wellbeing of citizens. Purdue Pharma and other opioid manufacturers misrepresented the addiction threat of their drugs, while simultaneously supplying obscene amounts of the drug to local pharmacies. Their actions led to the over-prescription of opioids around the country, and resulting high rates addiction to the prescription pills and non-prescription opioid drugs like heroin and fentanyl — according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, over 80% of heroin addicts used prescription opioids before using heroin.
Opioids have destroyed the lives of many — killing over 130 Americans every day — and costed the U.S. over $1 trillion in medical care, addiction treatment, and prison resources. The opioid crisis exhibits no indication of stalling, either. Forty-five states saw a 30% increase in opioid overdoses between July 2016 and September 2017, with overdoses increasing by 70% in the Midwest and 54% across large cities. Meanwhile, opioid manufacturers have profited.
Attorney Studstill will be working with attorneys Hayden Willis in Moultrie and J. Anderson Davis of Rome in the representation of the City of Moultrie. Along with the thousands of others involved in this mega-litigation, Studstill and her colleagues aim to hold pharmaceutical companies accountable for their negligence and greed.
Contact Studstill Firm, LLP to schedule a free consultation with our skilled legal team. With offices in Valdosta and Nashville, we represent personal injury victims and real estate clients throughout the state of Georgia. Call (229) 515-8900 or use our message form to get in touch with our lawyers.