KALAMAZOO, MI -- A majority of Kalamazoo County commissioners support suing pharmaceutical companies for manufacturing addictive opiates, but more information is needed before formal action is taken.

Tuesday, the Board of Commissioners spent an hour talking about the pros and cons of litigation during its committee meeting. The board directed Administrator Tracie Moored to address some of their uncertainties, resolving to make a decision at a later date.

Michigan cities and counties are filing federal civil lawsuit filed against some of the largest drug makers and pharmacies in the world on Dec. 19, 2017. The lawsuits seek to force companies to award damages for opioid-related deaths, treatment and law enforcement costs.

The Council of Economic Advisers estimated that the national economic cost of the opioid crisis was $504.0 billion in 2015, according to a 2017 report.

Commissioners Julie Rogers, a Democratic physical therapist, and Ron Kendall, a Republican, have been in discussions with attorneys and Michigan county officials since December.

Rogers said pharmaceutical companies have misled health care professionals and the public about the addictive potential of opiates for years. The crisis is perpetuated by false claims made by the industry, she said.

The result: growing costs for communities dealing with expenses for hospital visits, crime, treatment and even the deaths of opioid patients.

"Pursuing litigation is not about money," she said. "From my perspective it's an ethical and moral cause. I hope the outcome of potential litigation is to change the way (pharmaceutical manufacturers) practice and make sure they are up front with (the) potential for addiction."

Kendall is open to the idea, but cautioned the county to recognize that a lawsuit will not solve the expansive opioid crisis. Litigation would likely entangle a large amount of staff time and resources, so he asked the county to look before it leaps.

Six Democrats on the board expressed their support, while Republicans were less sure about the benefit. Commissioner Roger Tuinier wondered why manufacturers should solely take the blame -- doctors, hospitals and pharmacies are similarly guilty, he said.

Vice Chair Dale Shugars strongly opposed the lawsuit.

"I don't think a lawsuit is going to change the epidemic at all," he said. "If we prevail in the lawsuit, how many deaths are we going to prevent? I don't think it will prevent any deaths. (It will just) make us feel good."

Attorney Mark Bernstein, who has been in contact with the county since December, flatly disagreed with Shugars' sentiment.

"We've already seen some defendants change their conduct," he said.

A Kalamazoo County lawsuit would be filed as its own individual claim in U.S. District Court and move on to a multi-district litigation court in Ohio, Bernstein said.

The lawsuit pending in Federal District Court in Cleveland consolidates more than 400 complaints across the country.

U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions filed a file a so-called statement of interest in the Ohio court, essentially throwing the weight of the Justice Department behind the lawsuit.

Bernstein said the county would not be charged if the lawsuit fails. If successful, Rogers said, the firm would be awarded 30 percent of financial damages.

"This is an important decision for a municipality," Bernstein said. "I think (Kalamazoo County) is doing its appropriate, thoughtful due-diligence on this. We're pleased to see it appears the direction is to engage in an effort to change the course of the opioid epidemic through the civil justice system."

"The risk is quite minimal and manageable," he said.

According to a county report on opioid abuse, the number of retail opioid prescriptions has steadily decreased to 72.4 per 100 people since peaking in 2011. However, Kalamazoo County remained above the national rate in 2016 -- 66.5 prescriptions per 100 people.

The number of accidental opioid-related deaths doubled from 29 to 59 between 2015-16.

Opioid and drug abuse hit home to several commissioners.

An average of 24 people were treated for unintentional opioid overdoses each month in 2016. The rate of men treated for opioid-related overdose was twice as high than the rate for women.

In 2016, fentanyl accounted for 20 deaths, more than triple the number of deaths associated with the drug in 2015.

The average age of a person who died from an overdose is 39.4 years.

Injunctive relief is the most important aspect of the lawsuit, Bernstein said. The intent is to change the behavior of drug companies that are "misrepresenting the addictive quality" of opioids.

Close to 50 Michigan communities represented by Bernstein's firm since joined the lawsuit against a number of companies, while similar lawsuits are being filed by cities across the United States.

Some of the largest companies named in the lawsuit include Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of Oxycontin, several other drug makers, and large pharmacies, including CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid and Costco.

The 156-page lawsuit alleges these and other companies knew drugs they manufactured and sold had the potential to be abused, but acted with reckless indifference.

"Defendants acted with a conscious disregard for the rights and safety of others in a manner that had a great probability of causing substantial harm," the lawsuit reads.

Shugars and Commissioner Scott McGraw publicly warned against joining the lawsuit at a Tuesday, March 27 Portage City Council meeting.

McGraw and Shugars worried about the impact the lawsuit could have on Portage's relationships with Pfizer, but these concerns were dismissed by county commissioners.

Shugars and Tuinier also referenced a "marijuana problem" in Kalamazoo.

Shugars said it is ironic that companies that make addictive opiates are being sued while medical marijuana facilities are being allowed into the area.