Minneapolis on Friday sued a group of manufacturers and distributors of opioids, joining a long list of governments in Minnesota and across the country who recently filed lawsuits against companies.

The City's lawsuit targets more than a dozen Companies, arguing their actions to promote prescription opioid drugs, like OxyContin, have caused a crisis of addiction that is straining the city's resources . The lawsuit comes months after lawyers in Minnesota County, including Hennepin County, announced plans to sue the firms.

And he follows unsuccessful efforts in the Legislature to pass an opioid tax "With legislative efforts to hold drug companies accountable at the state and federal levels, our city is tracing its own Legal journey and directly bears the fight against manufacturers and distributors of opioids, "said Mayor Jacob Frey. said in a statement. "For years, they have knowingly helped fuel this crisis – they must provide the resources and support to repair the damage."

The lawsuit highlights the development of OxyContin by Purdue Pharma in the 1990s, and the subsequent promotion of this drug. By providing misleading information to doctors about the addiction and safety of opioids, even at high doses, by requiring them to prescribe their products by supporting, among other things, that no one should suffer, [manufacturers] created a population of addicted patients who were looking for opioids at rates never seen before, "says the city's complaint.

Purdue representatives did not return messages asking for comments on Friday.

Attorney Susan Segal said the city's goals are twofold: to impose penalties on companies for their actions and to reimburse the city for the additional services it has received. provide. The number of calls related to opioids at the Minneapolis Fire Department has increased by 13,000 or 59% since 2010.

"It cost the municipal government money in terms of response Fire Service and Police Response "

In two years, the Minneapolis Fire Department administered approximately 500 doses of naloxone, a life-saving drug, in response to an increase in overdoses, according to the fire chief of the city

. "The community of Little Earth, a Native American social housing complex near Franklin Avenue, which has been shaken by overdose deaths. Needles were found in sandboxes nearby, says the suit, and teenagers had to be trained to revive their family members.

Jolene Jones, president of the Little Earth Residents Association, said that one night in 2016, nine people overdosed. minutes – resulting in one death. The association has conducted training on naloxone.

"We need help in our community," Jones said. "And the drug companies do not care what they've done to us."

Last November, more than 100 similar lawsuits were filed by governments across the country, according to Governing Magazine. Many more lawsuits have been filed since then.