B.C. mom backs MP’s calls for criminal probe of opioid manufacturers
VANCOUVER — A woman whose son fatally overdosed after becoming addicted to the painkiller OxyContin is backing a New Democrat member of Parliament’s calls for the federal government to launch a criminal investigation of opioid manufacturers.
Helen Jennens said families that have lost loved ones to an ongoing epidemic want accountability for the actions of any company that profits from allegedly hiding or minimizing the addictive impact of opioids.
New Democrat MP Don Davies said the federal government should also pursue compensation for the cost of treating addiction in a country that is the second-leading user of opioids, after the United States.
Jennens was among what she estimated to be about 2,000 litigants in a class-action lawsuit that resulted in a $20-million settlement against Purdue Pharma (Canada). A Saskatchewan judge recently rejected the settlement, saying it was inadequate.