County considers opioid lawsuit

July 16--TIFTON -- The Tift County Board of Commissioners is considering joining a host of other counties and cities throughout the United States who are suing opioid companies for damages related to the opioid crisis.

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study from 2016 found that in the United States, there are 66.5 opioid prescriptions for every 100 people (that can include multiple prescriptions for one person).

Georgia is higher than average, with 77.8 opioid prescriptions per 100 people.

The average for Tift County is almost double the Georgia average, with 149.2 prescriptions written for every 100 people.

Three law firms -- Studstill Firm out of Valdosta; The Law Offices of Michael R. Herron out of Tampa, Florida; and Blasingame, Burch, Garrard & Ashley, out of Athens -- pitched their services to the Tift County Board of CommissionersJune 18, presenting their case for why the county should go with them.

Representatives from all three firms said they wouldn't get paid unless the county received recovery funds, with Herron asking for 20 percent of those recovered funds as payment and Studstill and Blasingame, Burch, Garrard & Ashley asking for 30 percent.

Herron, representing his office, pitched himself as a smaller firm that could pay personal attention to Tift County.

"We are small," said Herron. "We're not a big firm. I don't plan on taking more than two or three of these...You'll have nonstop access to me."

According to Herron, he's worked on recovery with the BP oil spill lawsuits, among other cases.

Blasingame representative Drew Hill touted the number of opioid lawsuit clients who have signed on with them.

"Right now, we represent about 60 counties already," said Andrew Hill. "We've got more lawsuits filed than all other firms put together."

The City of Tifton recently signed on with Blasingame in April. The firm also represents Ben Hill, Irwin, Worth, Dooley, and Crisp counties, among others, according to Hill.

"This is a state wide epidemic and we think we can bring dollars to you when the dollars start getting handed out," said Hill.

Haynes Studstill, representing Studstill firm out of Valdosta, pointed to her firm's close proximity as a reason to hire them.

"We represent 12," said Studstill. "Tift County would be lucky 13. And these cites are right here in our part of the state...It's easy for us to be here. And where that's going to make a difference is the amount of funds we're able to recover."

Grady Thompson, board chairman, raised concerns that any recovered money would go to the states directly instead of the cities and counties therein.

Thompson referenced the tobacco settlement of 1998.

"I'd hate to see the state get all of it and then at its discretion, throw you a few crumbs," said Thompson. "They took the tobacco money and throw you a few crumbs once in awhile to shut you up."

The settlement, according to Herron, could be multitiered, with separate designations for state, county and city funds.

"What we're hearing is that the settlement...that the way they're planning to do that is a multitiered...where states are in one bucket, counties are in another, cities in their own and hospitals in theirs," said Herron.

If a settlement was reached, Tift County could choose to participate in it or try the case on its own.

The City of Tifton filed April 5.

Other Georgia counties and cities have filed, including: City of Bainbridge; Decatur County; Cook County, Crisp County and City of Milledgeville.

___

(c)2018 The Tifton Gazette (Tifton, Ga.)

Visit The Tifton Gazette (Tifton, Ga.) at tiftongazette.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.