Attorney General Russell Coleman filed a lawsuit against Optum Rx for its role in the opioid epidemic

The Kentucky Attorney General’s Office has announced its latest lawsuit against a corporation responsible for the worst man-made epidemic in modern medical history.

Attorney General Russell Coleman has named Optum Rx and its affiliates as those responsible for the opioid problem. The organization is a pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) that works with opioid producers, pharmacies that deliver them, and third-party payers who pay for them.

According to the Attorney General’s lawsuit, Optum Rx played a key part in the reckless promotion, distribution, and oversupply of opioids. Optum Rx manages a pharmacy network that includes roughly 67,000 retail pharmacies around the country.

“Defendants have hidden their conduct through non-transparent business practices and by requiring each entity with whom they conduct business, such as opioid manufacturers, to enter into confidentiality agreements or otherwise keep their agreements confidential,” said the lawsuit.

“No state has been harder hit by the drug crisis than Kentucky. Last year alone, nearly 2,000 Kentuckians died of a drug overdose,” Attorney General Coleman said. “These groups pushed a profit-fueled agenda at the expense of Kentucky families, who are left with empty seats at the dinner table. Our Office will continue to hold those behind the drug crisis accountable for their devastating actions.”

In September, Express Scripts and affiliated corporations faced a previous complaint in Jessamine County Circuit Court, which this filing updates. It alleged that the groups used deceptive marketing to increase sales of highly addictive drugs, restricted tools that would have limited opioid prescription and dispensing, and dispensed opioids through mail-order pharmacies without effective controls in violation of Kentucky and federal law.

Attorney General Coleman is allocating money from previous opioid settlements to kid prevention initiatives. Earlier this year, the Kentucky Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission unanimously approved a two-year, $3.6 million statewide prevention effort to educate the Commonwealth’s youth about opioid hazards.

The “Better Without It” campaign, which focuses on positive youth development messaging, will encourage Kentuckians to avoid using drugs.

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