[Updated June 12, 2018, 3:25 p.m.] The cities of Lakewood and Wheat Ridge also filed a lawsuit against the nation's largest opioid manufacturers, including Purdue Pharma, Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Cephalon, Johnson & Johnson, Janssen, Endo and Mallinckrodt, in U.S. District Court in Denver on June 8.
The original story continues below.
Boulder County and 12 other local governments want to hold pharmaceutical companies accountable for skyrocketing rates of opioid abuse, overdoses and deaths in their communities. According to the , they plan to file a lawsuit to force the companies to pay a penalty and change their practices for marketing the drugs.
Boulder is joined by Adams, Arapahoe, El Paso, Jefferson and Teller counties, as well as Denver, Broomfield, Aurora, Black Hawk, Commerce City, Northglenn and Hudson.
The city of Denver is leading the lawsuit and currently soliciting proposals from law firms. The interview process will start June 15, but it may be August before complaints are filed because each city and county must get approval from various councils and boards to participate. Other communities could also join the suit.
So far, other Colorado communities have already filed against the nation's largest opioid manufacturers and distributors.
