FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NEWS ADVISORY
September 19, 2017
Steve Marshall
For More Information, contact:
Mike Lewis (334) 353-2199
Alabama Attorney General
Joy Patterson (334) 242-7491
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ATTORNEY GENERAL STEVE MARSHALL AMONG 41 ATTORNEYS GENERAL
SEEKING DOCUMENTS FROM OPIOID MANUFACTURERS AND
DISTRIBUTORS
(MONTGOMERY) – Attorney General Steve Marshall announced he is part of a bipartisan
coalition of 41 state attorneys general seeking documents and information from manufacturers
and distributors of prescription opioids as part of multistate investigations into the nationwide
opioid epidemic.
“Opioid abuse has reached a crisis level in Alabama and in many portions of the country, and
earlier this year I joined with fellow attorneys general in investigating what role opioid
manufacturers may have had in creating or prolonging the opioid abuse epidemic, and to
establish the appropriate course of action to help solve this crisis,” Attorney General Marshall
said. “Our investigation continues as we seek information from drug manufacturers and
distributors to help determine whether they engaged in unlawful practices in the marketing,
sale, and distribution of opioids.”
The attorneys general served investigative subpoenas for documents and information, also
known as Civil Investigative Demands, on Endo, Janssen, Teva/Cephalon, Allergan, and their
related entities, as well as a supplemental Civil Investigative Demand on Purdue Pharma. The
attorneys general also sent information demand letters to opioid distributors
AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health, and McKesson requesting documents about their opioid
distribution business.
Nationwide and in Alabama, opioids – prescription and illicit – are the main driver of drug
overdose deaths. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, opioids were
involved in 33,091 deaths in 2015 including 736 in Alabama, and opioid overdoses have
quadrupled since 1999.
On August 8, 2017, Attorney General Marshall was appointed by Governor Kay Ivey to co-chair
the newly-created Alabama Opioid Overdose and Addiction Council. The Council, which held
its organizational meeting in the Alabama Attorney General’s Office on September 5, will
examine the state’s opioid crisis and identify ways to reduce its harmful impact on Alabamians.
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501 Washington Avenue * Montgomery, AL 36104 * (334) 242-7300
www.ago.alabama.gov
