The state of Michigan filed a lawsuit Dec. 17 against Walgreens, as well as several top drug companies, categorizing them as drug dealers and accusing them of creating the opioid crisis, according to the Detroit Free Press.
The lawsuit was filed under the Drug Dealer Liability Act, which allows for civil damages against people who participate in the illegal marketing of controlled substances.
The suit includes drugmakers McKesson and AmerisourceBergen as well as medical distributor Cardinal Health. It accuses the companies of creating the opioid epidemic by flooding the market with prescription pain pills and for loose oversight over sales of those drugs, allowing them to be easily diverted for illegal use.
It is the first lawsuit in the nation to sue drugmakers as drug dealers, according to the Detroit Free Press.
The lawsuit seeks damages for the increased costs of law enforcement and prosecution caused by the epidemic as well as healthcare costs, drug treatment costs and other losses.
Read the full article here.
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