Johnson & Johnson opioid ruling spreads optimism around Western Pa.-based lawsuits

Westmoreland County is one of about 2,000 municipalities across the country with pending lawsuits against various drug manufacturers accused of promoting the opioid addiction epidemic that has devastated communities in recent years.

This week’s court ruling in Oklahoma, in which the state was awarded a $572 million judgment from drugmaker Johnson & Johnson, could signal the beginning of the end for similar lawsuits across the country, officials said Tuesday.

“I think there is starting to be some positive movement,” said Pittsburgh attorney Robert Peirce, who filed a comprehensive lawsuit on behalf of Westmoreland County against two dozen drug manufacturers and suppliers in 2017. It seeks payment for damages caused by the ongoing epidemic attributed to over prescription of pain medication.

The Oklahoma judgment fell short of the $17 billion sought by the state. Two other drugmakers, Purdue Pharma and Teva Pharmaceuticals, settled cases with Oklahoma earlier this year for $280 million and $85 million, respectively.

Westmoreland is one of more than a dozen counties and other plaintiffs lumped together in Pennsylvania as part of a consolidated legal action against the drug companies that is being overseen by a judge in Delaware County. Four state cases are expected to go to trial early in 2020, although Westmoreland’s litigation is not among those first up on the court schedule.

Peirce said a plaintiff’s verdict in Delaware County could spur the remaining state cases to settle.

“If we had our druthers, we would be doing the case in Westmoreland County right now,” Peirce said.

Western Pennsylvania counties — including Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Cambria, Fayette, Greene and Washington — have lawsuits pending.

In May, state Attorney General Josh Shapiro filed a similar lawsuit on behalf of Pennsylvania. That case is part of a consolidated federal litigation against drugmakers that is being overseen by a Cleveland court, where the first cases are expected to go to trial in October.

“Pharmaceutical companies must be held accountable for turning a blind eye to the dangers of their drugs and fueling the opioid epidemic in Pennsylvania. My office will continue to demand pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors take responsibility for their role in this crisis ravaging our communities,” Shapiro said in a statement issued Tuesday.

Legal observers said the Cleveland trial could spur a global settlement that will impact all of the pending litigation in the different jurisdictions.

Agnieszka McPeak, an associate law professor at Duquesne University School of Law, said this week’s landmark judgment in Oklahoma sends a message to the drug companies that they are not escaping responsibility.

McPeak suggested the outcome of the Cleveland trial could have an even more significant impact.

“It will be a real litmus test,” McPeak said. “Companies facing 2,000 lawsuits, at a certain point, want all the litigation to go away.”

The Westmoreland County suit is seeking damages to repay the public for the millions it says was spent to deal with the ongoing crisis. A report in 2017 from Westmoreland Controller Jeff Balzer found the county spent more than $19 million the year before for law enforcement, investigations, incarceration, supervision and other programs directly related to drug addiction.

Overdose deaths in the county attributed to opioids such as heroin and prescription painkillers, including oxycodone, reached record levels that peaked in 2017 with 193 fatalities. That number dipped last year to 122 deaths and another decrease is possible in 2019. Through Aug. 1, Westmoreland Coroner Ken Bacha reported 45 confirmed overdoses with another 14 cases suspected pending toxicology reports.