Montpelier — Vermont Attorney General TJ Donovan is working with a coalition of attorneys general to investigate the role of opiate manufacturers in the national addiction crisis.

Across the country, addiction rates to opiate painkillers and street drugs like heroin are skyrocketing. In Vermont, there were 106 opioid-related fatalities last year — a record high. Seventy-five people died of opiate overdoses in 2015.

“When you’re looking at the opiate crisis, it really is critical that it is a comprehensive approach,” Donovan said.

Donovan said on Friday the opioid crisis has long been a priority of his, since he served as state’s attorney in Chittenden County. He said the approach to countering opiate addiction should include efforts to prevent addiction, to intervene and provide treatment, and to use law enforcement resources to clamp down on drug dealers.

The role pharmaceutical manufacturers have played in the crisis is “another prong” of the issue that should be under scrutiny, he said.

“If we’re talking about a comprehensive approach, we should address the question of corporate responsibility,” Donovan said.

Donovan declined to provide details of the investigation into pharmaceutical companies.

According to a release from the Vermont Attorney General’s Office, Donovan is one of more than 25 state’s attorneys in the country to join the investigation. The coalition is bipartisan.

Donovan said he felt it was wise to partner with other states on the issue.