Tiny southern Colorado county sues giant opioid makers and distributors for millions
The lawsuit says citizens were falsely induced to take opioids
RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post
Huerfano County, Colorado has sued the nation’s top pharmaceutical companies claiming that its citizens were falsely induced to take highly-addictive opioids for pain management, leading to an epidemic of overdoses and deaths.
The lawsuit seeks class-action status in U.S. District Court in Denver against pharmaceutical companies and distributors including McKesson Corp., Johnson & Johnson, Purdue Pharma, Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. and numerous subsidiaries.
The lawsuit was filed Sunday by lawyers Stephen and Jason Ochs and Pat Mika of Colorado Springs; and Steven Skikos and Mark Crawford of San Francisco. Huerfano County seeks at least $750,000 in economic damages and $1.5 million in future damages.
Huerfano County, in southern Colorado, brought the lawsuit on behalf of its 6,400 residents to “protect the public” from businesses engaging in false advertising, the lawsuit says.
Read more from The Denver Post.
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