State announces investigation to address ongoing opioid crisis

More than 541 million opioids prescribed to Georgians over last 11 months

Attorney General Chris Carr announced on June 15 that the Office of the Attorney General of Georgia’s Consumer Protection Unit is working with a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general from across the country, investigating whether manufacturers have engaged in unlawful practices in the marketing and sale of opioids.

“America’s biggest drug problem isn’t only on our streets, it is also in our medicine cabinets,” Attorney General Carr said. “From June of 2016 to May of 2017, the total number of legal opioid doses prescribed to Georgia patients surpassed 541 million, and we are losing far too many citizens as a result of drug overdoses. I am pledging to the residents of Georgia that our office is prepared to take every step necessary to help combat this epidemic, and we will continue to find ways to work with our federal, state and local partners to seek justice on behalf of the people of Georgia.”

Nationwide and in Georgia opioids—prescription and illicit— are the main driver of drug overdose deaths. Opioids were involved in 33,091 deaths nationwide in 2015, and opioid overdoses have quadrupled since 1999. Currently, 55 Georgia counties have overdose rates higher than the national average.