Prescription drug manufacturers are dispatching lobbyists to fight proposed measures in state legislatures across the country that would levy taxes on opioid-based painkillers.

The Associated Press reported that both Pfizer and Purdue Pharma had hired lobbyists to push back against such proposals.

Pharmaceutical companies argue that such laws would only make drugs with legitimate medical purposes more expensive to patients, and that such tax revenue isn't necessary to pay for drug treatment.

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"We have been engaged with states to help move forward comprehensive solutions to this complex public health crisis and in many cases have seen successes," Priscilla VanderVeer, a spokeswoman for the trade group Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, told the AP in a statement.

"However, we do not believe levying a tax on prescribed medicines that meet legitimate medical needs is an appropriate funding mechanism for a state’s budget," she added.

Lawmakers in some states have proposed levying a tax on prescription painkillers as a way to get drug manufacturers to help cover the cost of the opioid epidemic that has ravaged the country.

But drug manufacturers argue that they already give rebates to states for drugs paid for by Medicaid, and that that money could be used to help cover the costs of opioid addiction treatment and recovery.