CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Eleven of the nation’s largest prescription drug distributors are asking the West Virginia Supreme Court to stop a state lawsuit that alleges the companies turned a blind eye to suspicious orders from “pill mill” pharmacies.
The drug wholesalers say Boone County Circuit Judge William Thompson “committed clear error” by refusing the companies’ repeated requests to dismiss the case.
The drug firms also assert the state Board of Pharmacy has the power to sanction prescription drug wholesalers, but not the Attorney General’s Office, Department of Health and Human Resources, and Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety — the three West Virginia agencies suing the companies. The pharmacy board isn’t taking part in the lawsuit.
The out-of-state drug wholesalers filed a “writ of prohibition” late Friday, arguing they can’t be held liable for West Virginia’s prescription drug epidemic.
“No one denies the devastating effect such abuse has had on our state,” wrote A.L. “Al” Emch, lead lawyer for the drug firms, in Friday’s filing. “At the same time, this lawsuit represents a blatant end-run around state law and the constitutional and jurisdiction limitations on executive officials, most notably the attorney general…
