Mallinckrodt files for bankruptcy protection after U.S. opioid lawsuit

Pharmaceutical company Mallinckrodt Plc filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Monday after the firm faced lawsuits alleging its involvement in the U.S. opioid epidemic and lost a court battle to avoid paying higher rebates to state Medicaid programs for its top-selling drug.

The company listed both assets and liabilities in the range of $1 billion to $10 billion, according to a filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

Mallinckrodt declared back in February that it has plans of having its generic drug business file for bankruptcy as part of a tentative $1.6 billion opioid settlement resolving claims by state attorneys general and U.S. cities and counties.

On August 4, the drugmaker warned that its parent company could also file for Chapter 11 protection after a judge permitted the federal government to force it to pay higher rebates to state Medicaid programs for its multiple-sclerosis drug H.P. Acthar Gel.

Over 3,000 lawsuits have been filed against various drug manufacturers, accusing them of engaging in deceptive marketing which promoted the use of addictive painkillers and fueled an epidemic that since 1999 has resulted in more than 450,000 overdose deaths.