
The History
Purdue Pharma’s aggressive marketing of OxyContin is often cited as a catalyst of a nationwide opioid epidemic. Oxycontin is a powerful prescription painkiller that hit the market in 1996. The company pleaded guilty to misbranding the drug in 2007 and paid more than $600 million in fines and penalties. Opioid-related overdose deaths have continued to climb, hitting 80,000 in recent years partly because of Oxycontin’s presence. The Purdue Pharma settlement would be among the largest and is one of only two with provisions for direct compensation to victims.
The Settlement Plan
The Sackler family agreed to give up ownership of Purdue Pharma and contribute up to $6 billion to fight the opioid crisis. However, members of the family would be exempt from any civil lawsuits in exchange for this agreement. At the same time, they could potentially keep billions of dollars from their profits on OxyContin sales.
Difficulties with the Plan
In 2021, a federal trial court judge ruled the settlement should not be allowed. This year, a federal appeals panel ruled in a unanimous decision opposing the ruling; however, one judge still expressed major concerns about the deal. The Supreme Court quickly agreed to take the case, at the urging of the administration of President Joe Biden.
The Family
In the fallout, parts of the Sackler family story has been told in multiple books and documentaries and in fictionalized series. Additionally, museums and universities around the world have removed the family’s name from galleries and buildings. Members of the family have remained mostly out of the public eye, stepping off the board of their company and refusing payouts. However, in the decade before that, they were paid more than $10 billion, about half of which they said went to pay taxes. This settlement, when it officially comes down, will surely shake up the world of big Pharma.