“The opioid crisis is a major problem in this country and the stats surrounding it are staggering,” said Anthony Coury, an attorney with the Napier Law Firm in Phoenix at the Navajo County Board of Supervisors meeting on May 22. He shared information on the ongoing multi-district litigation that originated in Ohio against opioid manufactures and distributors.
“Counties, cities and municipalities are spending money by the hundreds of millions of dollars to deal with this crisis,” noted Coury. Earlier this month, the Ohio courts had a major movement forward in the lawsuit when the Drug Enforcement Administration was ordered to turn over the Automation of Reports and Consolidated Orders System (ARCOS) database that tracks the shipment of opioids to every city and county in the nation.
Coury said that with access to the database the courts can have a clear picture of what has been shipped to every plaintiff in the lawsuit, thereby creating a more concise basis for the settlements.
Coury said there is no cost for any state, county or city to join the lawsuit, the only payment received by the seven law firms involved in the litigation is 25 percent taken from the settlement amount with a 10 percent cap for case cost. “If there is no settlement, there is no cost to you,” stated Coury. “The heavy lifting is being done by the firms in Ohio, where the litigation originated. If you join, then you have a place at the table. If you choose not to, then you will have nothing, should it settle.”
Navajo County Attorney Brad Carlyon asked if there was any clue as to what the damages for this crisis were nationwide. Coury replied that at this point the numbers were not in but likened it to the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement in 1998, which has resulted in $275 billion dollars in settlement. In that case, there were four original tobacco companies. In this lawsuit, there are eight manufacturers and three distributors.
Coury said there are currently 650 participants in the litigation and his firm represents 300 of them.
Supervisor Jesse Thompson said he appreciated what Coury shared. “The information is very encouraging and we, the board, need to continue to discuss this.”
Brent Meyer, a resident from Snowflake, addressed the board with his concerns regarding the opioid crisis, saying he offered another perspective as he is a veteran that faces chronic pain every day of his life. “They are going after the big pharmaceutical companies because they are making money,” shared Meyer. “What a lot of people are not doing is looking at the patients and now the Veterans’ Administration is saying no more opioids for pain.”
According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse website the summary of statistics for Arizona show that in 2016, there were 769 opioid-related overdose deaths in Arizona—a rate of 11.4 deaths per 100,000 persons, compared to the national rate of 13.3 deaths per 100,000 persons. From 2013 to 2016, the number of heroin-related deaths increased from 102 to 299 and was the main driving force of the rising opioid overdose death rate. In the same period, deaths related to synthetic opioids increased from 36 to 123 deaths.”
The matter was presented for discussion only and the board took no action.
In other business, the board:
* Presented Lynn Johnson with a plaque in honor of his retirement as the Arizona Department of Transportation District Engineer for the Northeast District.
* Proclaimed the week of May 20-26, 2018 National Public Works Week in Navajo County.
