A lawyer for two Ohio counties urged a federal jury on Monday to hold three major pharmacy chains responsible for fueling an opioid epidemic in their communities as the first trial the companies have faced over the drug crisis neared its end, Reuters reported. Mark Lanier, a lawyer for Lake and Trumbull counties, told a federal jury in Cleveland that a verdict in the case against CVS Health Corp, Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. and Walmart Inc. would have ramifications all across the country. The counties accused the companies of creating a public nuisance in the form of the epidemic by failing to prevent excessive amounts of addictive pain pills from flooding their communities or identify "red flags" of misuse. Lanier said the pharmacies sometimes filled prescriptions for a year's worth of pain pills at a time and that their screening policies for a time were "porous beyond all description." Communities were "devastated" by their flood of opioids they failed to stop, he said. The companies have denied wrongdoing and said the blame falls on others, including doctors and government regulators. Their lawyers are expected to deliver closing arguments later on Monday.
