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SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The maker of a widely abused prescription opioid drug falsely marketed the painkiller as being crush resistant and downplayed the drug's addiction risks, according to state Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman.

His office announced today it has reached an agreement with the maker of Opana ER to stop making false and misleading claims about the long-acting opioid drug.

Endo Health Solutions and Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc., the maker of the drug, is being fined $200,000 as part of the settlement.

Opana ER has been widely abused in New York state, especially on Long Island. Nassau County issued a public health alert in 2011 following a spike in opioid abuse and reports that many people were seeking treatment for addiction to Opana ER.

Endo is an an Irish company with U.S. headquarters in Pennsylvania.

The Attorney General's office said Endo improperly marketed Opana ER as being crush resistant, even though its own studies showed the drug could be crushed and ground. The investigation also showed the company instructed sales representatives to diminish risks associated with the drug, including addiction.

Some Opana ER prescribers have been convicted of illegally prescribing opioid drugs. The AG's Office said the company had no meaningful program to make sure sales reps were not encouraging health care providers engaged in abuse and diversion to write more prescriptions for Opana ER.

The use of prescription painkillers to manage non-cancer pain has increased ten-fold over the past 20 years, leading to a sharp increase in addiction, according to the AG's Office.

Matthew Maletta, executive vice president of Endo, said his company is committed to patient health and safety.

"We therefore support efforts to curb opioid prescription abuse and we believe that enhancing those efforts, including through anti-diversion programs, is an effective use of time and resources," he said.

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