Washington files suit against Johnson & Johnson on opioid crisis charges

The state of Washington is suing Johnson & Johnson for profiting from sales of opioids.

Ryan Blethen reported the news for the Seattle Times:

Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson on Thursday continued his legal offensive against companies that have profited from opioids, announcing a new lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson and a subsidiary.

The 78-page complaint, filed Thursday in King County Superior Court, asks that Johnson & Johnson pay the state the amount of money the company has made from selling opioids in Washington, in addition to civil penalties and damages. That precise dollar figure is unknown (it would surface during the discovery period of the lawsuit), but Ferguson said he’s confident it’s in the millions. Any money the state receives would be put toward opioid addiction prevention and treatment, Ferguson said.

The lawsuit is part of Ferguson’s legal strategy to bring cases he believes the state can win against companies that either manufacture or distribute prescription opioids such as oxycodone.

The Associated Press reported:

The multinational company that supplies raw materials used to make opiates drove the pharmaceutical industry to recklessly expand the production of opioids to the point where there was more than a two-week supply of daily doses for every person in the state, the lawsuit says.

“The human toll is staggering,” state Attorney General Bob Ferguson said at a news conference.

The lawsuit, which seeks civil penalties and damages, was filed in King County Superior Court. It says the company violated the state’s Consumer Protection Act, was negligent and a public nuisance.

Washington is also asking that the company forfeit profits made in the state as a result of its behavior. Ferguson said that figure is in the millions of dollars.

Janssen Pharmaceutical Inc., a Johnson & Johnson subsidiary named in the lawsuit, said its opioid marketing was ’’appropriate and responsible.″

“Janssen provided our prescription pain medicines for doctors treating patients suffering from severe pain and worked with regulators to ensure safe use – everything you’d expect a responsible company to do,″ its statement said.