(December 6, 2017, 12:22 PM EST) -- WASHINGTON, D.C. — A federal judicial panel on Dec. 5 centralized almost 180 federal lawsuits against opioid manufacturers and distributers by cities, counties and state before U.S. Judge Dan A. Polster of the Northern District of Ohio (In Re: National Prescription Opiate Litigation, MDL Docket No. 2804, JPMDL)....