Arizona's attorney general is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to force the Sackler family, which owns OxyContin-maker Purdue Pharma, to return billions of dollars they took out of the company.
Wednesday's court filing marks the first time the high court has been asked to weigh in directly on the nation's opioid crisis.
A Sackler spokesman says the family denies the allegations in the claim.
The filing is the latest of maneuver from a state seeking to hold the drug industry accountable for a crisis that costs more American lives each year than vehicle crashes. It also comes months after Purdue said it was considering filing for bankruptcy.
Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich says the filing is meant to ensure that Purdue has enough money to pay any future judgments.
