Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
New Hampshire AG: OxyContin Maker Routinely Engages In Deceptive Marketing
Less than a month after getting legislative approval to investigate the marketing habits of drug companies, the state attorney general鈥檚 office has narrowed its probe to just one, Purdue Pharma, accusing the enterprise of distributing 鈥渕isleading information鈥 to doctors about its painkiller OxyContin. In a lawsuit filed Friday in Merrimack County Superior Court, the office said preliminary findings suggest that Purdue routinely engages in deceptive marketing, misrepresenting the 鈥渞isks and benefits of long-term opioid use for chronic pain.鈥 (Blackman, 6/9)
Executive Councilor and Republican candidate for governor Chris Sununu came under fire Wednesday for statements he made about the state and local responses to New Hampshire鈥檚 heroin and opioid crisis. After filing to run for governor Wednesday morning, Sununu told reporters he thinks the state needs more money and better leadership to deal with the drug epidemic. (Nilsen, 6/9)
In other news聽鈥
A U.S. advisory panel on Wednesday recommended approval of Pfizer Inc's long-acting opioid painkiller Troxyca ER, saying it dulls pain and its design could deter abuse by addicts in search of a quick high. (Clarke, 6/8)
In response to a spiraling overdose crisis, Ohio health regulators enacted urgent reforms in 2012 to limit the amount of opioids prescribed to patients, cutting the number of doses by 11.5 percent over the next three years. But the quick results collided with a cold reality: Overdose deaths in the state skyrocketed during that same period. (Ross, 6/8)
When DeAndre Levy suffered a hip injury last August that eventually required season-ending surgery, the deep-thinking Detroit Lions linebacker made a conscious decision to rehab himself back to good health without the use of opioid pain-killing pills that are commonly prescribed in the NFL. Levy, like most players, had used such pills at the recommendation of team doctors in the past. (Birkett, 8/8)
The drug that killed Prince has become a favorite of Mexican cartels because it is extremely potent, popular in the United States 鈥 and immensely profitable, American officials say. Law enforcement and border authorities in the United States warn that Mexican cartels are using their own labs to produce the drug, fentanyl, as well as receiving shipments from China. Then the cartels distribute the substance through their vast smuggling networks to meet rising American demand for opiates and pharmaceuticals. (Ahmed, 6/9)
