By Dietrich Knauth

July 13 (Reuters) - Washington state accused Albertsons at a trial that kicked off on Monday of helping fuel the opioid epidemic by flooding its communities with addictive painkillers and failing to prevent their misuse and diversion.

Jeff Gaddy, an attorney representing the state, said in opening statements that Albertsons, one of the largest U.S. grocery retailers, put profits over safety, and overworked its own pharmacists to the point that they were “defenseless” to investigate potential “red flags” in the prescriptions they filled.

The state in 2022 sued Albertsons in state court in Seattle, seeking to force it to pay the costs of addressing opioid-related harms in the state. Washington did not say how much money it is seeking from Albertsons in damages, saying that it will address costs and penalties at the end of the trial.

The company, which faced thousands of similar legal claims from state and local governments, announced a $774 million nationwide opioid settlement in April, but Washington chose to continue its lawsuit rather than joining that deal.

“[Albertsons] fostered a work environment from top to bottom that was chaotic, stressful, and hostile, and where folks felt like they were grinded down to a nub,” Gaddy said on Monday. “Albertsons substantially contributed to the opioid epidemic here within the state, and it needs to be cleaned up.”

More than 26,000 state residents have died from an opioid overdose since the start of the crisis, and over 7,400 have died in the past three years alone, according to a statement by Washington Attorney General Nick Brown.

Albertsons operates 200 pharmacies in Washington, mostly under its Safeway brand.

Enu Mainigi, an attorney for the company, said the company sold legal drugs that were prescribed by doctors, and that it would be unfair to blame pharmacists for a change in doctors' prescribing habits.

“The pharmacist's role is not to reexamine patients and question the judgment call of a patient's doctor unless there's a real reason to believe a prescription is illegitimate,” Mainigi said.

The trial, which is being overseen by Judge Janet Helson, is expected to last until September.

Albertsons said in a statement that it has strong pharmacy practices that are designed to promote safe and responsible use of prescription medicines and that its April settlement is not an admission of liability or wrongdoing.

Washington has actively litigated against drugmakers, pharmacy chains and drug distributors it has accused of fueling the opioid crisis in recent years, often continuing to press its case in court after other states settle their claims.

The state reached a $518 million settlement after starting a trial against three large opioid distributors in 2022, taking about $100 million more than it would have received if it had chosen to participate in the nationwide settlement framework proposed by those companies.

Nationwide litigation against opioid companies has resulted in more than $50 billion in total settlements, with most of the money going to state and local governments.