On Wednesday, Ontario passed a bill to join five other provinces in a class-action suit led by British Columbia against opioid manufacturers alleging false marketing tactics.
The suit is filed in a bid to recoup costs from manufacturers and distributors for the nuances caused post its introduction in 1996 into the Canadian market. The province stated that they would invest the potential settlement amount into front-line mental health and addiction services. Other provinces who support the lawsuit include New Brunswick, Newfoundland, and Labrador, Saskatchewan, and Alberta.
A study by a national advisory committee shows around 14,000 Canadians have been killed by the opioid over the last four years. The number is high in the U.S, with 400,000 deaths between 1999 and 2017.
More than 2,600 lawsuits are consolidated under MDL No. 2804 (In Re: National Prescription Opiate Litigation) presided by U.S. District Judge Dan Polster.
