28 Aug 2019

Johnson & Johnson to appeal $900m opioid ruling

From Morning Report, 8:41 am on 28 August 2019

US pharmaceutical giant Johnson and Johnson says it will appeal after being ordered to pay close to $900m ($US572m) for its role in Oklahoma's opioid addiction epidemic.

On average 130 Americans die from an opioid overdose every day.

In his ruling, Judge Thad Balkman said the company had used an aggressive and deceptive marketing campaign to push the painkillers to doctors and patients.

Carl Tobias, professor of law at the University of Richmond in Virginia, spoke to Corin Dann about the case.