Louisiana, A New Entrant Joins The Opioid MDL

Louisiana, A New Entrant Joins The Opioid MDL

Introduction

Louisiana is now putting efforts to redirect all the lawsuits against opioid manufacturers into the MDL to join more than 2,000 other lawsuits from states, cities, and school districts.

According to Jacques Ambers, special assistant to Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry, Landry was working collaboratively with the governor’s office against the opioid crisis but now will redirect his efforts into the MDL.

The state saw a rise in opioid overdoses, and the Louisiana Department of Health reported that there have been 401 deaths statewide in 2017, a rise from 217 in 2014. The crisis drained nearly $300 million from state coffers annually, which was used for incarceration, social services, health care, schools, and lost productivity.  

Last month, plaintiffs filed a motion seeking certification for a negotiation class, a new structure that will be representing all 24,500 cities and counties in the U.S. as part of an opioid settlement.

U.S. District Judge Dan Polster is presiding over all opioid lawsuits consolidated under MDL No. 2804 (In Re: National Prescription Opiate Litigation).