OxyContin trial will be conducted in Kentucky

Lawsuit returned to Pike Circuit Court

FRANKFORT, Ky. (Jan. 10, 2013) — The U.S Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit on Wednesday affirmed a lower court’s order returning a 2007 lawsuit against Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of OxyContin, to Pike Circuit Court in eastern Kentucky.

Shortly after the case was filed, Purdue Pharma removed the case to the Southern District of New York. The two-judge panel on Wednesday upheld the prior decision of the U.S. District Court, which allowed the attorney general’s motion to proceed with the litigation in Pike Circuit Court where it originally was filed.

OxyContin abuse is a widespread problem in Pike County.

[pullquote_left]In a 2010 Forbes study of the nation’s most medicated states, Kentucky ranked fourth. From 1999 to 2004, Kentucky overdose deaths increased 164 percent.[/pullquote_left]

“OxyContin is highly addictive and easily abused prescription drug that has wrought tragic consequences throughout the commonwealth, and Purdue Pharma’s misrepresentations about its addictive nature helped fuel an epidemic of prescription pill abuse across Kentucky,” said Attorney General Jack Conway. “After years of delay tactics, Purdue will now answer to a Kentucky court and a Kentucky jury.”

The commonwealth’s lawsuit alleges that Purdue Pharma misled healthcare providers, consumers and government officials regarding the risk of addiction associated with OxyContin, a schedule II narcotic. The lawsuit seeks reimbursement for costs incurred in drug abuse programs, law enforcement actions, and prescription payments through Medicaid and the Kentucky Pharmaceutical Alliance program. Pike County joined the suit to combat the epidemic of prescription drug abuse, which is blamed for a growing number of overdose deaths across the commonwealth.

“More Kentuckians are dying from prescription drug overdoses than traffic accidents,” Conway said. “Drug companies that mislead consumers about the nature of their drugs must be held accountable.”

Non-medical use or abuse of prescription drugs is the fastest-growing drug problem in the United States, according to the National Office of Drug Control Policy. In a 2010 Forbes study of the nation’s most medicated states, Kentucky ranked fourth. From 1999 to 2004, Kentucky overdose deaths increased 164 percent.

OxyContin is one of the most widely abused prescription drugs.