Opioid trial: State tries to prove higher bonuses given if doctors prescribed more opioids
Prosecutors asked hours of tough questions for the state of Oklahoma's final witness in its lawsuit against drugmaker Johnson & Johnson on Tuesday.
They asked a former sales representative about what she said to doctors in Oklahoma when she marketed opioids. The representative said over and over during her testimony that she doesn't remember much of what she told doctors or what Johnson & Johnson taught her about marketing opioids.
The state has been building its case in court for weeks, trying to prove that sales representatives misrepresented drugs to doctors. They argued that higher bonuses were given if a doctor wrote more prescriptions after a visit from a sales representative.
Lawyer: "So they told you what to and not to say?"
Witness: "Well, we just, we were trained on what we could talk about and what we're not able to talk about. So what was approved, by the company and, and that aligned with the FDA."
Lawyer: "So, you did what you were told by your employer."
Witness: "I did what I was told."
The defense argued that Johnson & Johnson acted responsibly when marketing FDA approved drugs. Their case starts Wednesday.
"The evidence presented at trial continues to demonstrate Janssen did everything a responsible manufacturer and seller of prescription opioid medicines should do, including thoroughly training its local sales representatives to provide accurate information on the risks and benefits of its products to physicians in their communities," said John Sparks, Oklahoma counsel for Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Johnson & Johnson. "As Mr. Flanary testified, Janssen believes its medicines, when prescribed appropriately by physicians, undeniably have important benefits for patients."