Plumes of dust, laced with lead, blow across the factory like a sandstorm. The poison hangs so thick in the air, sometimes the only thing visible is the warm, orange glow from the furnace.
Dozens of Workers File Suit Against Tampa Lead Factory
Workers claim the company put profits over safety by failing to fix severe ventilation problems that allowed toxic lead dust to accumulate in the plant and to provide workers with proper respiratory protection.
Former Worker Sues Tampa Lead Smelter Over Son’s Exposure
A former lead smelter worker has filed suit against Gopher Resource on behalf of his young son alleging that the company’s dangerous and dusty work environment resulted in the boy being exposed to the neurotoxin.
New York Times: Companies Finalize $26 Billion Deal With States and Cities to End Opioid Lawsuits
The nation’s three largest drug distributors and a major pharmaceutical manufacturer announced Friday that a supermajority of states and localities had accepted the terms of their $26 billion offer to settle thousands of civil claims related to the deadly opioid crisis. The first checks are expected to go out in early April.
Washington Post: Major drug distributors and J&J finalize opioid settlement, launching nationwide funding
or drug distributors and the drugmaker Johnson & Johnson finalized a $26 billion agreement on Friday to bring relief to states and communities affected by the opioid epidemic, in what lawyers say is a turning point in the deadly public health crisis.
Time Magazine: Johnson & Johnson and Distributors Finalize Landmark $26 Billion Opioid Settlement
Drugmaker Johnson & Johnson and three major distributors finalized nationwide settlements over their role in the opioid addiction crisis Friday, an announcement that clears the way for $26 billion to flow to nearly every state and local government in the U.S.
Axios: Over 200 Newspapers Quietly Sue Big Tech
Newspapers all over the country have been quietly filing antitrust lawsuits against Google and Facebook for the past year, alleging the two firms monopolized the digital ad market for revenue that would otherwise go to local news.
Closing arguments in opioid trial set this week
With the rest of the country taking a chance to catch its breath after the announcement of a $26 billion settlement with some opioid firms, Huntington and Cabell County are standing firm as they prepare for closing arguments with opioid distributors this week.
Former DEA agent: Drug wholesalers didn’t report a decade of suspicious pain pill orders
Paul Farrell Jr., Cabell County’s lawyer, argued the drug companies never pulled the fire alarm despite numerous warnings about suspicious orders of oxycodone and hydrocodone.
Drug company exec says system of checks and balances goes beyond what law requires
Last week, Cabell County attorney Paul T. Farrell Jr. pointed to an internal memo that said a small pharmacy could order 350,000 hydrocodone or oxycodone pills a year, a medium pharmacy, 760,000, and a large pharmacy over 1 million without triggering a suspicious-order alert.