Hillsborough, tops in state for drug-addicted babies, will file suit against opioid makers

Dennis Joyce Assistant metro editor

Published: August 10, 2018

Updated: August 10, 2018 at 07:48 AM

TAMPA — Medical, law enforcement, and justice system leaders will hold a news conference Tuesday to announce that Hillsborough County is filing a lawsuit against drug companies blamed for contributing to the opioid addiction crisis.

The lawsuit says drug manufacturers helped cause the opioid addiction crisis by aggressively marketing opioid drugs, overplaying their benefits in treating chronic pain and downplaying their dangers, according to a news release Friday from the county.

In 2016, Hillsborough County had more babies born addicted to drugs than any other county in Florida, according to the release.

Nationwide, local governments had filed some 200 civil cases in the federal courts as of late last year, and dozens of other suits were working their way through state courts. Attorneys general from nearly every state had joined together to look into legal options.

Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi announced in May that she had filed “the most comprehensive lawsuit in the country” against the largest manufacturers and distributors of opioids, blaming them for creating an opioid crisis that has killed more than 10,000 Floridians. The suit was filed in Pasco County.

Among those scheduled to attend the Tuesday news conference in Tampa are Board of County Commissioners Chairwoman Sandra Murman; attorney Mike Moore, who led the legal fight against tobacco companies and who is now heading up lawsuits against opioid manufacturers; Sheriff Chad Chronister; and State Attorney Andrew Warren.