Endo International, a DuPont spin-off is looking at a bankruptcy filing as it faces a rising tide of opioid-related legal actions, according to the Wall Street Journal reported.
The Delaware Valley-based company is laboring under a heavy debt load while dealing with lawsuits from governmental units arising from pharma companies selling more opioid medications than needed for legitimate medical purposes.
The legal exposure has led to bankruptcy filings for two other companies, Purdue Pharma and Mallinckrodt. Endo, unlike its peers did not reach an overall settlement on claims.
Endo, a company that specializes in pain medications such as Percocet, was sold by DuPont in 1997 to DuPont pharmaceutical managers who tapped into private equity financing. DuPont later moved its pharmaceutical operations into a joint venture with Merck and later exited the pharmaceutical business.
The company, which went public in a stock sale, grew rapidly through demand for its products and acquisitions.
Endo was first headquartered near the Delaware line in the Concordville-Chadds Ford area and now has a U.S. headquarters in Malvern, PA. The company moved its global headquarters to Ireland for tax reasons.
Carol Ammon, its first CEO, post-DuPont, has been active in philanthropic activities in Delaware. Ammon retired in 2007.
