Pennsylvania a Leader in National Investigation into Sale of Opioids

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro is working with a bipartisan coalition of a majority of attorneys general from across the country in an ongoing investigation to evaluate whether manufacturers have engaged in unlawful practices in the marketing and sale of opioids.

The attorneys general are investigating what role the opioid manufacturers may have played in creating or prolonging this epidemic.

“The people peddling the drugs ripping apart our towns aren’t only on our street corners,” Attorney General Shapiro said in a press release issued by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. “Three out of four heroin users started by abusing prescription opioids, and our ongoing investigation is going straight into the boardrooms of pharmaceutical companies. We will follow the evidence to hold every person and every company responsible for this tragedy accountable on behalf of Pennsylvanians.”

The coalition of attorneys general is using its investigative tools, including subpoenas for documents and testimony, to determine the appropriate course of action to address the opioid epidemic.

Nationwide and in Pennsylvania, opioids – prescription and illicit – are the main driver of drug overdose deaths. Pennsylvania saw 4,642 fatal drug overdoses in 2016 – a 37 percent increase over 2015.

“I’ve seen the pain caused by this crisis and heard from families that have been torn apart,” Shapiro said in the press release. “To everyone touched by this epidemic, who has felt the wave of overdose deaths and dealt with the pain of addiction in your family and in your town: we’re fighting back for you.”

The coalition of attorneys general is not identifying any targets of its investigation at this time.