One of the most common things ever said about justice is that its wheels turn slowly.
That’s certainly the way it’s been going for Guilford County and many other local governments across the country engaged in a number of joint lawsuits against the makers and distributors of opioids. Like many counties, cities and towns in America, Guilford County has faced tremendous cost, suffering and loss of life due to the actions of the drug companies, and it has, for years, been trying to recoup some of those costs by suing the drug makers and distributors.
This week, Purdue Pharma pleaded guilty to charges filed against the company for its role in the opioid crisis and it agreed to pay an $8.3-billion settlement.
Guilford County should end up with some of that money, however, Guilford County Attorney Mark Payne said there’s still a long way to go before a check from the company is written that the county commissioners can cash.
“It is likely that Guilford County will see some of this money,” Payne wrote in an email, “but the details are far from resolved.”
Payne pointed out that there are a lot of players in the mix. The North Carolina Association of County Commissioners (NCACC) formed a committee to negotiate with the state’s Attorney General’s office to arrive at “a fair allocation” of any of the proceeds that come to North Carolina from the lawsuits.
“It is informally called the ‘5-5-5’ committee as it has 5 county managers, 5 county commissioners and 5 county attorneys,” Payne wrote. “Guilford County, Forsyth County and Rockingham County are represented on the committee by myself, Gordon Watkins, Forsyth County Attorney, and Rockingham County Commissioner Reece Pyrtle. Those discussions are moving in a positive direction but no resolution has been reached yet.”
While the Purdue Pharma case may have been resolved with an $8.3-billion price tag, it’s not clear how much Guilford County will get.
There are also other suits against drug makers that have yet to be resolved.
As part of the Perdue Pharma plea, the company admitted quite a bit of serious wrongdoing, including misleading the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and falsifying reports to the agency. The company also admitted to violating kickback laws and to helping medical professionals prescribe opioids in an illegitimate manner.
The Role of the Commitee applies here. By the time they get trough with it, there will be little, if any, result that pleases anyone. Oh yeah, the Legal Larrup, too. I may have to settle for a cheese sandwich. Can’t be an old pimento cheese sandwich, as I may get covid from it.
That sums it up!
Sorry if it offends anyone, but if you put toxins in your body, even legally prescribed ones, there can be tragic consequences. A doctor’s advice is simply that. It isn’t a concrete answer, it is an educated guess. It is ultimately up to you to decide whether or not to take that advice and ingest whatever substances are prescribed. Your body, your choice. The folks who manufacture & market the drugs, and the insurance executives that decide which drugs they will pay for are the criminals. Even the best doctors get scammed. One of my old doctors had a strict policy that he would only see drug reps between 2:00 and 2:30 on Tuesdays & Thursdays. They had to sign up in a calendar book. And the next available appointment may be 10 months from now. He was notoriously late if you had an early morning appointment because he was usually ushering a homeless individual he had just treated out the back door with sample medications. As cautious as he was, he still had 2 employees writing and ordering prescriptions for opiates and other drugs and selling them.