Opioids
Endo is one of the companies named in lawsuits by the states of Ohio,[43] Missouri and Mississippi[44] as responsible for the US opioid epidemic. Its 10-K statement indicates that a majority of the company's US revenue in 2016 was derived from the sale of prescription pain killers, predominantly opioids.[45]
On June 8, 2017, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released a press statement in which it announced that it requested Endo to withdraw its opioid drug, oxymorphone hydrochloride (Opana ER), from the market. Opana has been linked to outbreaks of HIV, hepatitis C and serious blood disorders.[46] It was the first time that the FDA had "taken steps to remove a currently marketed opioid pain medication from sale due to the public health consequences of abuse."[47]
In 2021, New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against Endo and several other opioid manufacturers for their alleged contribution to the opioid epidemic in New York.[48]
As part of Endo's 2022 bankruptcy proceedings, it agreed to spend more than $500 million settling opiod relating lawsuits. These proceedings now require Endo to turn over all court documents related to its role in the opioid crisis for publication in a public online archive.[49][50][51]
In 2024, Endo agreed to a civil settlement of $464.9 million to resolve its civil liability under the federal False Claims Act by unlawfully promoting Opana ER, a dangerous opioid drug that was removed from the market by Endo at the FDA’s request.[52]
Non-profit funding
Endo Pharmaceuticals at various times was a significant funder of the American Pain Foundation, which has been accused of producing misleading and biased materials relating to opiod prescribing.[53][54] APF shut down in 2012 after the United States Senate Committee on Finance began an investigation into the relationships between narcotic manufacturers and pain advocacy organisations.[55][56] APF cited "irreparable economic circumstances" in its decision to close.[57][56]
