On February 1, 2024, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) issued a final rule revising 42 CFR Part 8, which regulates opioid treatment programs (OTPs). The final rule is the first update to...more
In 2020, over 142 million prescriptions for opioid medications were filled in the U.S. That same year, 16,416 people died from overdoses on prescription opioids—a 376% increase from 1999....more
While critics keep throwing up a false narrative about “ambulance chasing,” self-enriching lawyers, their labors and the civil legal system have proven yet again their effectiveness in wringing financial justice for those...more
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has recently emphasized that Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont are priorities for health care investigations and anticipated significant enforcement. Even well-managed (and...more
The Supreme Court will hear argument next week in two consolidated cases that will decide what standard applies when a doctor asserts a good faith defense to a criminal prosecution for unlawful drug distribution. ...more
The regular folks who make up juries may give more heed than judges and justices do to the how and why of patients’ push for justice in the civil system, as has been shown in yet another bellwether decision involving major...more
Patients who say they were injured by wealthy corporations must possess great fortitude as they seek justice in the civil system, as has been reaffirmed by the courts in California and Oklahoma that rejected separate cases...more
A bipartisan group of AGs reached a $26 billion global settlement with three major drug distributors and Johnson & Johnson (“J&J”) (collectively “Companies”), pending approval by the vast majority of states and...more
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is investigating companies that produce and sell poppy seeds due to growing concerns over contamination with a controlled substance. In doing so, it is collaborating with the Drug...more
Health workers with legal prescribing privileges have gotten newly revised federal guidelines — once again — making it easier for them to help those addicted to powerful opioid painkillers by prescribing buprenorphine,...more
The opioid abuse and drug overdose crisis has tarred yet another of the nation’s business titans: McKinsey, a globally renowned consulting firm, has discovered that providing corporate clients sketchy advice about addictive,...more
The Justice Department handed Walmart a huge slap in the face last year with the filing of a comprehensive civil case alleging that Walmart knowingly distributed large quantities of opioids in disregard of the law that fueled...more
The pharmacy defendants – major national corporations CVS Pharmacy, Inc., Rite Aid of Maryland, Inc., Walgreen Co., and Walmart Inc., sued by Long Island counties Nassau and Suffolk (County Plaintiffs) in their capacities as...more
Massachusetts Department of Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel issued three new orders concerning the COVID-19 emergency. ...more
DUSTING SPRAY DEATHS AND INJURIES - Robins Kaplan LLP is investigating and litigating “dusting” cases, which arise when someone inhales—or “huffs”—compressed gas dusting spray for its intoxicating effects while driving and...more
In response to the opioid epidemic, many states, including Texas, created prescription drug monitoring programs to monitor high-risk patients and provider behaviors. The Texas Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (“PMP”) is...more
On January 27, 2020, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a $145 million settlement with electronic health record (EHR) vendor Practice Fusion to resolve civil and criminal allegations that it violated the Anti-Kickback...more
Headlines that Matter for Companies and Executives in Regulated Industries - DOJ News - Four Physicians Found Guilty for Role in $150 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme - Following a four-week trial, a federal jury in...more
In this installment of the Healthcare Enforcement Quarterly Roundup we cover several topics that have persisted over the past few years and identify new issues that will shape the scope of enforcement efforts in 2020. In this...more
In Lebanon County Employees’ Retirement Fund, et al. v. AmerisourceBergen Corporation, the Delaware Court of Chancery ordered the inspection of the books and records of AmerisourceBergen Corporation, one of the leading opioid...more
In a 63-page decision issued on Jan. 13, 2020, in Lebanon County Employees’ Retirement Fund v. AmerisourceBergen Corporation, Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster of the Delaware Court of Chancery found that stockholders of...more
A drone attack on Saudi Aramco oilfields this weekend affected 5% of global production and sent “energy prices substantially higher” late Sunday and early today. Analysts don’t anticipate a “severe shock to energy markets and...more
In July, The Washington Post published data showing approximately 76 billion oxycodone and hydrocodone pills were purchased and sold in the Unites States from 2006 to 2012. The data came from the Automation of Reports and...more
North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein identified opioid abuse and cybersecurity as top challenges businesses face, while also giving attendees at Ward and Smith’s 2019 Employment Law Symposium a look at the broad...more
Rochester Drug Co-Operative, Inc. (“RDC”), one of the 10 largest pharmaceutical distributors in the United States, was recently charged along with its former Chief Executive Officer and former Chief Compliance Officer, for...more