A county in Southern Illinois beset by drug addiction is suing Chicago-area Abbott Laboratories for its alleged role in the opioid epidemic. The lawsuit claims drug manufacturers Abbott Laboratories and Purdue Pharma knew prescription opioids were addictive - but aggressively marketed them anyway. St. Clair County State’s Attorney Brendan Kelly filed the lawsuit today.
"We’ve been dealing with this opioid crisis for a number of years now, I’m not sure we’re winning. But the pharmaceutical companies, they have a role to play in this. They’ve played a tremendously negative role up to this point, and they have an opportunity, I hope, to become part of the solution rather than part of the problem."
An Abbott spokeswoman declined to comment because the company had not yet received the lawsuit. A spokesman for Purdue said the company shares the concerns about the opioid crisis and is committed to finding solutions.