U.S. state officials are due today to launch a counterattack against OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP over its attempt to shield the company and its controlling Sackler family from thousands of lawsuits accusing the company of fueling the opioid epidemic, Reuters reported. Attorneys general from Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and other states are expected to object to Purdue’s request that a U.S. bankruptcy judge shield the company from more than 2,600 lawsuits seeking billions of dollars in damages, according to court filings and three people familiar with the preparations. Purdue filed for chapter 11 protection last month after reaching a deal it estimated valued at more than $10 billion that would resolve the bulk of the cases, most of which were brought by states and local governments. The lawsuits allege that Purdue and the Sacklers contributed to a public health crisis that has claimed the lives of nearly 400,000 people since 1999 by aggressively marketing opioids while downplaying their addiction and overdose risks. The company said that it needed to pause the litigation for about nine months so it could negotiate settlements with the remaining plaintiffs and preserve money that would otherwise be spent fighting the cases. Purdue also asked the bankruptcy judge overseeing its case to halt litigation against members of the Sackler family, some of whom previously sat on Purdue’s board.
