Category: opioid crisis

DeSantis Applies $205.7 Million From Florida Opioid Settlement Fund to Combat Addiction

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced $205.7 million would be allocated to fight fentanyl addiction in the state by expanding a pilot program and funding mobile units that can help rural communities. “We’re here today to talk about our efforts to combat the opioid crisis, and this is a serious crisis affecting not just the state…


Fentanyl Overdose Antidote Gets Fast Tracked Review by FDA, Company Says

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will give priority status to an over-the-counter opium overdose antidote nasal spray submitted for review, the pharmaceutical company said Monday. The over-the-counter naloxone nasal spray is needed to combat the synthetic opioid fentanyl, which is linked to tens of thousands of annual overdose deaths in the United States….


Walmart Agrees to $3.1 Billion Opioid Settlement Framework

Walmart has agreed to a $3.1 billion settlement framework to resolve allegations by authorities across several states over the retailer’s contribution to the national opioid crisis. State, local, and tribal authorities accused the nation’s largest retail chain of failing to properly regulate its pharmacies’ opioid prescriptions, which led to millions of addictions and deaths across the United…


CVS, Walgreens Agree to Pay Nearly $10 Billion in Settlements to Resolve Opioid Lawsuits

Pharmacy store chains CVS and Walgreens announced on Wednesday they have agreed to pay a total of nearly $10 billion to “substantially resolve” various opioid-related lawsuits launched against them. CVS and Walgreens are the two largest pharmacy chains in the United States by market share. The settlements, if finalized, would be the first nationwide deal reached…


Phoenix Police Officers Seize More Than 1 Million Fentanyl Pills During Drug Bust

A police drug bust in Phoenix netted more than 1 million fentanyl pills in what city police called the most significant fentanyl seizure in department history. On Sept. 21, Phoenix police detectives with the Special Assignments Unit executed a warrant to search a home in Avondale, during which they found a large stash of drugs….


How ‘The Most Dangerous Opioid’ Works on Your Brain

The United States has been in the midst of an opioid crisis for over two decades with the pandemic only aggravating an already looming problem. With words such as fentanyl, morphine, heroin, and opioids constantly being thrown around in the media, we can become fearful of these drugs that were once made and used to…


Walgreens Prescriptions Added to San Francisco’s Opioid Epidemic: Judge

Walgreens Boots Alliance contributed to the opioid epidemic in San Francisco through its sale of prescription drugs in the city, a federal judge concluded on Wednesday. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco said that Walgreens failed to properly investigate suspicious opioid orders for nearly 15 years. The amount the pharmacy chain must pay…


US Judge Rules in Favor of 3 Drug Distributors in West Virginia Opioid Lawsuit

CHARLESTON, W.Va.—A federal judge on Monday ruled in favor of three major U.S. drug distributors in a landmark lawsuit that accused them of causing a health crisis by distributing 81 million pills over eight years in one West Virginia county ravaged by opioid addiction. The verdict came nearly a year after closing arguments in a…


Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Doctors Challenging Opioid Convictions

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) ruled in favor of two doctors challenging convictions on drug distribution charges for over-prescribing controlled opioids on the rationale that their actions may have been in “good faith.” The justices ruled 9–0 on June 27 (pdf), siding with Dr. Xiulu Ruan and Dr. Shakeel Khan. Justice Stephen…


Alabama Reaches $276M Settlement in Opioid Litigation

The state of Alabama on Tuesday reached a $276 million settlement agreement with Endo Pharmaceutical, Johnson & Johnson, and McKesson for their role in exacerbating the opioid crisis. The settlement will see pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson pay $70.3 million in a lump-sum payment to Alabama state and its subdivisions this year, and Endo Pharmaceutical…