A New York judge presiding over the state courts' multicounty opioid litigation in Suffolk County brought on behalf of a coalition of New York counties, which is being closely watched by courts in other jurisdictions around the country, has refused to toss claims against drug distributors.

“This is another major victory for New York in both this litigation and in its battle against the opioid epidemic,” Paul Napoli said in a written statement. “The distributor defendants were entrusted to act as intermediaries between manufacturers and pharmacies, but instead they were integral to the scheme to expand the market for prescription opioids.” Download