Opioid Settlements Proposed

Public Health

Ireland-based generic pharmaceutical manufacturer Mallinckrodt agreed to a $30 million settlement with $24 million paid in cash and $6 million in drugs that include addiction treatment medications.

Additionally, last week, sources inside Purdue Pharmaceuticals negotiations say the company intends to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy which would protect them if their proposed settlement is not accepted. This would dissolve their company, allowing them to sell OxyContin and other medicines under a new company and pay plaintiffs with the consequent profits. The company would also donate drugs for addiction treatment and overdose reversal, as noted by the New York Times.

In this deal, the Sackler family would pay $3 billon over the course of seven years. Despite hefty prospective payouts, no admission of guilt would be made under the settlement. Many believe the prospective settlement is insulting to victims.

Global Efforts Raise Awareness For HIV Patients

Advocacy

Last week, the North Dakota Community Planning Group for HIV and Viral Hepatitis Prevention, Care and Treatment (NDCPG) held its second annual HIV Awareness Walk. The organization’s intention is to improve statewide access to quality HIV prevention services.

Meanwhile, in Atlanta, a $2.5 million federal grant from The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has been given to Fulton County. This grant aims to provide assistance to Black and Latino men in the community, who are disproportionately affected by the epidemic. Retention of care and suppression rates among those who do have HIV are also intended goals of the grant.

Overseas, Glasgow, Scotland reports major strides in HIV treatment and prevention, with over 90% of people there living with diagnosed HIV seeking treatment. This fall, Johnson & Johnson will test an HIV vaccine across North America, South America, and Europe. Results will be available in 2021.

Expedited RoundUp Trial Requests

Legal Developments

Last Thursday, the lawsuits of a 13-year-old ("G.B.") and 87-year-old (Cotton) who developed non-Hodgkins lymphoma, which they attribute to Monsanto’s weedkiller Roundup, have placed requests for a speedy trial.  Despite a state statute that allows minors, plaintiffs over age 70 and those with severe health conditions to cut the line in trial, Monsanto’s counsel, Sandra Edwards of Winston & Strawn LLP, refuted Cotton's request. She claims the woman's health records are “antiquated” and not reflective of her current health status.

These requests come amid 13,400 cases pending against Monsanto's owner, Bayer, handled by Judge Winifred Smith. Still more plaintiffs seeking recourse, most recently Gerald Kubena of Casper, Wyoming, file lawsuits against Bayer for Roundup's cancer-causing harm. Though science lacks definitive claims on the carcinogenic nature of the herbicide, Bayer faces a long legal path ahead. 

Johnson & Johnson Claim Mistrial After New Jersey Verdict

Legal Developments
Two weeks ago, Johnson & Johnson attorney Diane Sullivan’s closing argument was struck for suggesting that the evidence brought by four plaintiffs against the company was “lawsuit fiction.” Now, following a $37.7 million dollar verdict by the jury, Johnson & Johnson calls for a mistrial. The pharmaceutical company argues that the judge failed to clearly identify which of Sullivan's remarks were problematic and instead delivered "a confusing and prejudicial tarring of J&J's entire closing with one broad brush."

Judge Ana C. Viscomi countered these claims, stating that Sullivan's implications that the plaintiffs had manufactured evidence of their illness were out of order and that she had already reminded Sullivan of this throughout the trial.

Last week also saw the first talcum powder case in Georgia and a retrial in California regarding asbestos in talc products.