DEA Ordered To Release Opioid Data

CLEVELAND, OH — The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) must turn over all of its records tracking the shipment of opioids to every city and county in the nation, according to an order from U.S. District Judge Dan Polster. With several states and metro areas filing lawsuits against opioid manufacturers, public representatives are celebrating and saying this will help hold those companies responsible for their role in the epidemic.

There is currently a judicial gag order in place for developments out of Polster's court, according to a spokesperson for Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine. That means the attorney general's office cannot comment on the development. However, DeWine has previously accused drug manufacturers of knowingly contributing to the spread of opioid addiction.

Nashville-area attorney Mark Chalos, who is representing Metro Nashville in its own lawsuit, did provide comment to the Tennessean on Polster's order.

"The release of the ARCOS data is an important development. It is a game changer for those fighting in federal court to hold the opioids industry accountable for the harm it has caused to families and taxpayers," Chalos said.

Several states, including Ohio, have filed suit against opioid manufacturers like Johnson & Johnson and Purdue Pharma. Those companies denied any wrongdoing when news of Ohio's lawsuit broke in May 2017.

Polster is overseeing more than 600 lawsuits, many from states like Ohio, all filed against drug manufacturers. He said the information the DEA possesses is crucial to any decisions that will be made in those cases.

Technically, Polster's decision is an extension of a previous order that required the DEA to release the Automated Records and Consolidated Orders System (ARCOS) database for Ohio, West Virginia, Illinois, Alabama, Michigan and Florida. He said the data found in those reports was "extremely informative."

The agency will now be required to release its records for all states from 2006 to 2014 and has till May 25 to meet the order.

Polster's order suggests that some lawsuits are currently in the nascent stages of settlement. He believes the ARCOS data could help clarify the terms of any such deal.

Photo from Shutterstock