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Pennsylvania attorney general pledges opioid crisis help through drug company probe

Renatta Signorini

Attorney General Josh Shapiro speaks at WCCC

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro delivered the keynote address during a daylong discussion about the opioid epidemic at Westmoreland County Community College on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2018. By Renatta Signorini


Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro hopes to alter the corporate behavior of opioid manufacturers and distributors that are under investigation for allegedly pumping pills into communities.

Shapiro is part of a multi-state investigation that he believes “will be successful,” he told a group Wednesday at Westmoreland County Community College.

“I fundamentally believe that the opioid manufacturers and distributors have to be held to account for their role in the crisis,” he said. “We will recover for the people of the commonwealth, and at the end of the day, most importantly, we will change corporate behavior.”

Shapiro's comments came at the conclusion of a day-long seminar addressing the region's opioid epidemic at the Hempfield college. Several panel sessions throughout the day included speakers from the Drug Enforcement Administration, local drug and alcohol agencies, the U.S. Attorney's office, law enforcement and people in recovery from an addiction.

Speakers talked about partnerships between prosecutors and public health as well as programs designed to funnel people into treatment.

The state's top prosecutor discussed the multi-state investigation, as well as his role in arresting drug dealers and health care professionals who have alleged ties to the epidemic that's taking a toll locally and nationally. Shapiro's office has charged two local physicians with drug delivery resulting in death in connection with fatal overdoses of patients.

In Westmoreland County, a record 193 people died from drug overdoses in 2017.

Between 2013 and 2016, 473 people have died of overdoses in Westmoreland County, according to coroner statistics.

Shapiro pointed out the positive steps he has seen in communities across the state, from a decreased stigma associated with drug use to tons of unused prescription medications people are turning over to authorities.

“Wherever you are in this commonwealth, it's taking a toll,” Shapiro said. “We're seeing the public step up in really meaningful ways.”

Westmoreland Drug and Alcohol Commission director Colleen Hughes said she is impressed with Shapiro's ability to work with various law enforcement agencies, even at the federal level. He celebrated one year in office Wednesday.

“He's so proactive with going for not just the physicians, but also going after the pharmacies,” Hughes said, adding that he has been supportive of her agency. “He understands the struggles that we go through getting individuals into treatment.”

The commission presented the event along with the University of Pittsburgh Institute of Politics, the Department of Justice, the Drug Enforcement Administration and Pitt's School of Pharmacy Program Evaluation and Research Unit.

Several lawmakers were on hand throughout the day, including state Rep. Eric Nelson, R-Hempfield, who said he is pleased the attorney general has been targeting doctors in Westmoreland County. As a result of those arrests and investigations, other physicians are paying closer attention to the prescriptions they write, Nelson said.

“It was very positive to hear some of the best practices ... in other counties,” he said.

Shapiro is among 41 attorneys general nationwide who have served subpoenas for documents and information from the companies under investigation.

“We think that they have likely turned a blind eye to what is happening in our communities,” he said after his address. “We think that they need to pay for that.”

Renatta Signorini is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach her at 724-837-5374, rsignorini@tribweb.com or via Twitter @byrenatta.


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Dan Speicher | Tribune-Review
Attorney General Josh Shapiro talks about the toll of opioids on Pennsylvania while giving the keynote address, during the Addressing the Opioids Epidemic in Western Pennsylvania summit at Westmoreland County Community College in Hempfield Township on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2018.
gtropioidsWCCC002011818
Dan Speicher | Tribune-Review
Attorney General Josh Shapiro talks about the toll of opioids on Pennsylvania while giving the keynote address, during the Addressing the Opioids Epidemic in Western Pennsylvania summit at Westmoreland County Community College in Hempfield Township on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2018.
gtropioidsWCCC003011818
Dan Speicher | Tribune-Review
Attorney General Josh Shapiro talks about the toll of opioids on Pennsylvania while giving the keynote address, during the Addressing the Opioids Epidemic in Western Pennsylvania summit at Westmoreland County Community College in Hempfield Township on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2018.
gtropioidsWCCC004011818
Dan Speicher | Tribune-Review
Attorney General Josh Shapiro talks about the toll of opioids on Pennsylvania while giving the keynote address, during the Addressing the Opioids Epidemic in Western Pennsylvania summit at Westmoreland County Community College in Hempfield Township on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2018.