Maker of OxyContin Files for Bankruptcy

Purdue Pharma building
Photo by GREG PATTON/Shutterstock.com
 

Purdue Pharma filed for bankruptcy late Sunday, September 15, 2019. Lawsuits from all over the United States claim Purdue Pharma started the opiate and opioid epidemic we currently are experiencing. Purdue Pharma are known for being the makers of OxyContin and MS Contin. They also make brand formulations of tramadol, hydromorphone, fentanyl, hydrocodone, and codeine. All those drugs have a high risk of addiction.

The bankruptcy is part of an agreement made with state, county, and local agencies in order to settle these lawsuits and cope with the opiate and opioid crisis. The settlement is close to $12 million dollars. As of 2016, Purdue Pharma has made over $36 million dollars from the sale of these prescription drugs. The money made from this settlement will be used to cover damages made from responding to overdoses, fighting drug-related crime, and expanding drug-use prevention services. It is unknown at this time if anyone will be facing criminal charges. Furthermore, Purdue Pharma denies any wrongdoing regarding the opiate and opioid crisis.

There is a lot of controversy behind Purdue Pharma. In the 1990s, doctors were aggressively pushed and “bribed” by Purdue Pharma with expensive trips to seminars and given royalties for pushing OxyContin and other opiates onto their patients. The highly addictive side effects of these drugs were still not understood. They were marketed as a less addictive substitute for morphine and immediate-release oxycodone, even though there were not enough studies done proving so. Additionally, there were no studies done to see if OxyContin could be used recreationally. In 2007, Purdue Pharma was investigated and charged with fraudulent marketing. They were ordered to pay $600 million dollars in fines and settlements. Three executives were also indicted and charged with a felony. Oddly enough, they only were sentenced to community service hours.

Purdue Pharma is owned by the Sackler family. Their reported net worth in 2019 is $13 billion. Much of that fortune was built upon the suffering of hundreds of thousands of addicts and their families.

In my opinion, money from this settlement should be used to better fund rehabilitation services. An addict needs a longer rehabilitation period than 28 days. Unfortunately, this is all that state-funded insurances cover.

While Suboxone and methadone do prevent and lower the number of overdoses, they also make a person dependent on a substance. Substituting one drug for another is not the solution. Use of Suboxone and methadone ends up being a more harmful problem than illegal drugs when a person decides to stop using them. Their withdrawal symptoms turn out to be worse than the withdrawal symptoms from heroin and other opiates. Just ask any heroin addict; they can confirm it.

Drugs are a problem. They also mask a deeper underlying issue a person isn’t willing to confront. Call Narconon for more information and how Narconon can help you take control of your life. Narconon saved my life. It can save yours too.

AUTHOR

Aaron

Aaron has been writing drug education articles and documenting the success of the Narconon program for over two years.

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