New York City Opioid Injury Lawyer
New York City and the rest of the United States are in the midst of an ongoing opioid epidemic. If you or a loved one were harmed because of opioid misuse, you may be entitled to financial compensation. Our experienced NYC opioid injury lawyers at Rosenbaum & Rosenbaum, P.C. will fight to get the fair compensation you deserve.
We offer a free consultation, so call us today to speak with a lawyer who will fight to protect your legal rights.
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How Will an Experienced NYC Personal Injury Lawyer Help if I Was Hurt by the Opioid Epidemic?
Opioids are commonly used to treat severe pain. While these drugs are highly effective in treating pain, the prescription drug companies failed to warn people about the dangers associated with opioid use.
Opioids are extremely addictive and highly dangerous if misused.
Millions of Americans are addicted to opioids through no fault of their own. After all, you should be able to trust that the drugs your doctor prescribes are safe.
Drug manufacturers failed to give people the information necessary to protect their health. You have the right to hold them financially accountable for the damage they’ve caused.
Going up against big pharma is no easy task. Even if liability has been established, their teams of defense lawyers will do everything they can to pay less for your injuries.
Our lawyers have over 40 years of experience standing up to large corporations like Purdue Pharma, Abbott Laboratories and the other companies who have profited from the opioid crisis.
When you hire our NYC personal injury lawyers, you can rest assured that we will:
- Investigate to identify the parties responsible for your opioid injuries, which may include doctors, hospitals and pharmaceutical companies
- Work tirelessly to hold every responsible party accountable
- Retain the leading experts in medicine and other professions to properly assess the value of your injury claim
- Fight back when the insurance company tries to blame you for your injuries
- Make sure you understand your legal options and have the full information needed to make smart choices
Our personal injury attorneys have recovered millions of dollars in compensation for injured clients across New York City. We have experience handling the complex issues that arise in opioid injury cases. Give us a call today to learn more about how we can help your family get justice.
The Opioid Epidemic in the U.S.: The Facts
According to Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data, more than 760,000 people have died from drug overdoses since 1999. Two out of every three drug overdoses involved an opioid. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) estimates that 130 people die from an opioid overdose every day.
In 2018 alone, about 2.3 million people misused opioid medications in the United States. Why is opioid misuse so prevalent? It’s because the drugs are highly addictive. Unfortunately, doctors prescribed opioids at an alarmingly high rate in past years–even when they weren’t strictly necessary for pain management. While prescription rates have begun to decline since 2012, about 168,158,611 prescriptions for opioids were written in 2018 alone.
Prescription rates skyrocketed despite the fact that there’s no indication that Americans were in more pain than in past years. Millions of Americans were harmed for no reason. Our lawyers are here to hold the responsible parties accountable if your family was harmed.
What Are Prescription Opioids?
“Opioid” is the term used to describe a type of prescription drug derived from the opium poppy plant. Some classes of opioids are made from the plant. Others are made in a lab–these are known as “synthetic opioids”.
Opioids are powerful painkillers because they block pain signals that are generally sent from the brain throughout the body. Instead, large amounts of dopamine are passed through the body, which usually makes the person using the opioid feel relaxed and euphoric. Of course, this feeling is a major reason why opioids are so addictive.
Examples of prescription opioids include:
- Hydrocodone
- Oxycontin
- Oxymorphone
- Morphine
- Codeine
- Fentanyl
Prescription opioids share many of the same chemical properties found in heroin. People who become addicted to opioids often resort to heroin to satisfy their addiction–because heroin is often cheaper and easier to obtain without a prescription.
Injuries Associated With Opioid Misuse
Opioids are meant to be used for treatment of acute pain.
In other words, they’re effective in treating pain that is severe, but not expected to last very long. When opioids are used to treat chronic pain, users can suffer serious injuries.
The longer opioids are used, the more serious the long-term consequences can be. Some of the injuries and health problems associated with opioid misuse include:
- Drowsiness
- Dizziness
- Physical dependence
- Hypoxia (lack of oxygen to the brain)
- Compromised immune system
- Constipation
- Personality changes
- Hormone dysfunction
- Respiratory problems
Opioid misuse can also lead to overdose and wrongful death. The physical side effects are only a small aspect of the harm caused by opioid addiction. Cognitive and personality changes can wreak havoc on families. A person suffering from an opioid addiction may be unable to work and earn a living.
Our lawyers are here to help get fair compensation for all of the damage opioids can cause. To learn more about how we can help, just call our law offices to get the legal advice you need.
Who is Responsible for Paying Compensation in an Opioid Injury Case?
If you became addicted to opioids, don’t let the insurance companies make you believe you’re to blame. Pharmaceutical companies played a major role in the uptick in opioid use in past decades. Their own marketing practices made people believe these drugs were safe. Nothing could have been further from the truth.
Our mass tort lawyers will help you hold all responsible parties financially accountable for your injuries. Those parties might include big pharma, hospitals and even your own doctor.
Pharmaceutical Companies
Several pharmaceutical companies have already offered settlements to make up for their role in the opioid crisis. Johnson & Johnson was recently ordered to pay $465 million to victims of the opioid crisis. Pharmaceutical distributors have also been held responsible.
These companies have been held responsible for deceptive marketing of a dangerous drug. Companies are responsible when they sell a product that is unreasonably dangerous for consumers under New York product liability laws.
To learn more about getting the money you deserve, call our lawyers to discuss your specific case today.
Medical Professionals
Doctors, hospitals and even pharmacists have a legal duty to provide competent care. That includes prescribing drugs that are reasonably safe for patient use–and telling you about the risks in advance. Major companies like Costco have already been held liable for improperly filling prescriptions in their pharmacies.
Some doctors are careless and take the easy way out. Other medical professionals might be motivated by profit. Pharmaceutical companies sometimes provide incentives for medical professionals to use their product. If your doctor was negligent, you may have a claim for medical malpractice.
What Types of Damages Are Available to Opioid Injury Victims and Their Families?
Like car accident victims, opioid injury victims are entitled to compensation for all out-of-pocket expenses incurred because of the injury. You’re also entitled to compensation for things like pain and suffering. When you become addicted to a drug that you can’t have, that pain and suffering can be severe.
Our personal injury lawyers will fight to get every dollar you deserve. Your fair settlement may include compensation for:
- Medical bills
- Lost wages and salary
- Future medical costs
- Rehab
- Counseling
- Lost future earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Diminished quality of life
- PTSD
- Anxiety and depression
- Damages for wrongful death, including loss of consortium and financial support
It’s not always easy to get the full amount you deserve–even if it seems like the drug company has agreed to a massive payout. The true costs of the opioid epidemic far exceed the amount that pharmaceutical companies have agreed to pay.
Our lawyers are here to protect your best interests. We’ll do everything we can to get the full financial recovery you deserve. We know you’re dealing with challenges if your family was harmed by the opioid epidemic. If you suffered an injury or lost a loved one, don’t hesitate to ask for help.
Our lawyers offer a free consultation and, once you decide to hire us, we work on a contingency basis. That means we only recover our attorneys’ fees if we win compensation in your case. To learn more and get started, just give us a call when you’re ready.
Call an Experienced New York City Product Liability Lawyer to Learn More About Your Rights
New York City continues to be ravaged by the opioid epidemic. People are injured and dying on a daily basis because of the actions taken by big pharma and medical professionals. An NYC opioid injury lawyer can fight to get the fair compensation you deserve to hold them accountable.
Our lawyers offer a free consultation to every potential client. Reach out to our law firm today to see how we can help get the money you need to move forward with your life. We serve clients across NYC and Long Island.
