West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey Files Opioid Lawsuit Against Kroger
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The West Virginia Attorney General's office has filed a lawsuit against another grocery/pharmacy chain accused of playing a part in West Virginia's opioid crisis as it prepares to go to trial against three others over the same accusations.
State Attorney General Patrick Morrisey announced Wednesday that his office recently filed suit against Kroger. Morrisey said his office had been trying to obtain documents from the grocery store chain, but had not received cooperation from the company.
"(W)e think it is really important that we hold entities accountable for the role they play in the opioid crisis," Morrisey said Wednesday at the Consumer Protection Eastern Panhandle Office in Martinsburg. "We know that Kroger, we believe, should have produced these documents, and we are proceeding now to a lawsuit, and we are going to be aggressive, and we are going to try to make sure everything we do is consistent with the law and that everyone who has a duty under the law is complying with that."
The Attorney General's office also is preparing for trials against a trio of department store and pharmacy chains - Walmart, CVS and Walgreens.
“Sept. 26 -- we are proceeding, we are getting ready, and we are ready for trial. We are not afraid of trial, as a lot of people know,” Morrisey said.
Morrisey's office recently settled with Rite Aid for $30 million.
During his press conference, Morrisey also discussed the Inflation Reduction Act and explained how he believes it will hurt West Virginians.
“First of all, let me say that the Inflation Reduction Act is a horrible piece of legislation that is going to harm West Virginia," Morrisey said. "Yes, there are tax increases. Don’t let people tell you there are not. We have looked at it. We have read the bill. We know that coal is disproportionately harmed by the Inflation Reduction Act. This is going to put people out of work in West Virginia. It is going to hurt our state tremendously.
“Look, I get it that there are going to be some people that argue that there are some aspects to it that may be helpful, some may be harmful, but overall, this is a really bad bill for West Virginia and for our country,” he added.
Morrisey has spent time in the Eastern Panhandle this week listening to concerns of citizens.
“I am pleased to be up here in the Eastern Panhandle this week. We are spending time, and we are listening to the people, what is on their mind. And let me tell you, they don’t like this Inflation Reduction Act nonsense.”
He said that while the Attorney General’s Office has a lot on its plate, it is working in the interest of upholding the rule of law.
“It is a team approach, and the Republican AGs will be the point of the spear, and we are going to make sure the rule of law is upheld in the United States of America,” he concluded.