Tennessee, Virginia hospitals file opioid lawsuit

In this Aug. 17, 2018, file photo, family and friends who have lost loved ones to OxyContin and opioid overdoses leave pill bottles in protest outside the headquarters of Purdue Pharma, which is owned by the Sackler family, in Stamford, Conn. New York is suing the billionaire family behind Oxycontin, alleging the drugmaker fueled the opioid crisis by putting hunger for profits over patient safety. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill, File)
In this Aug. 17, 2018, file photo, family and friends who have lost loved ones to OxyContin and opioid overdoses leave pill bottles in protest outside the headquarters of Purdue Pharma, which is owned by the Sackler family, in Stamford, Conn. New York is suing the billionaire family behind Oxycontin, alleging the drugmaker fueled the opioid crisis by putting hunger for profits over patient safety. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill, File)

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A group of hospitals in Tennessee and Virginia have filed a lawsuit against the manufacturers, distributors and retailers of opioid-based drugs.

Twenty-six hospitals in eastern Tennessee and seven hospitals in southwestern Virginia are involved in the civil suit. The complaint was filed in July, but it wasn't publicized until Thursday.

According to a news release, hospital officials say they have received little to no reimbursement for the services they have provided. The defendants named in the lawsuit include Purdue Pharma, Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories and others.

Tennessee has experienced record numbers of deaths from opioid use from 2012 to 2017. Meanwhile, in Virginia, the amount of people who have died from an opioid overdose has led state health leaders to declare opioid addiction as a public health emergency.

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