Ohio Pharmacy Litigation Documents
Background
County of Lake v. Purdue Pharma L.P. et al.
County of Trumbull v. Purdue Pharma L.P. et al.
The records in this collection come from the cases County of Lake v. Purdue Pharma L.P. et al., and County of Trumbull v. Purdue Pharma L.P. et al. (Docket Nos. 1:18-op-45032 and 1:18-op-45079). The plaintiffs alleged CVS, Walgreens, Walmart, Rite Aid, and Giant Eagle, through negligence and deceptive marketing practices, failed to monitor, report, or take preventative actions against excessive distribution, dispensing, and diversion of opioids. Additional allegations include violations of Ohio and Federal controlled substances laws, and causing a public nuisance. Rite Aid settled its claims before trial and Giant Eagle settled shortly after the start of trial. Defendants CVS, Walgreens, and Walmart were found liable for the claims and were ordered to pay a total of $650 million.
Documents
The documents consist of 195 trial exhibits and 31 volumes of trial transcripts. Exhibits include emails (many from pharmacy managers), pharmacy brochures, sales data and audit reports, National Institutes of Health and Center for Disease Control guidelines, correspondence from the Drug Enforcement Agency, and scholarly articles. Names frequently appearing in email correspondence are company executives Brad Nelson (Walmart), Adam Zaken (Giant Eagle), Michelle Travassos (CVS), and Cassandra Castros (CVS). The documents show trends in drug distribution, dispensing, and deaths in Ohio and illustrate attempts and failures at creating and enforcing policies relating to drug dispensing practices and diversion prevention. Email correspondence from pharmacy managers to corporate executives reveal that concerns were raised about the increase in opioid prescriptions as well as specific doctors and pain clinics who were seen as excessive prescribers.
Dates: 1998-2021
Where to Start
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