WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT THE PURDUE PHARMA BANKRUPTCY

Not much but far from being a surprise, after being accused of selling a few trainloads of Oxycontin over the years since 1952, when the three Sackler brothers purchased what became one of the most prolific purveyors of pain killer pills in the world. The ramifications of Purdue Pharma filing for bankruptcy promises to linger in the courts and headlines for years.

All we have so far is an astounding bunch of numbers. At this time, thousands of communities in 20 states have sued Sackler family members for their roles in the opioid crises that has brought about a staggering number of deaths. The New York Times has documented more than 351,000 deaths from opioid overdoses.   

Worse, the mortality rate has quadrupled in the last two decades and is still climbing, even as you read this. Of course, Purdue is not the only Big Pharma firm being blamed; Just possibly the biggest.

This public health crises is far from peaking, due to the flood of fentanyl, produced in China and rapidly making its way to America.

But what about the bankruptcy of Purdue and what are the army of attorneys hoping to protect for the greatly beneficent Sackler clan* and the even greater army of attorneys representing victims and families of victims who feel that the Sacklers benefited unfairly by leading the mass marketing of synthetic opioids.

*In a Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the family has already agreed to pay $4.5-billion.

That’s just for starters, folks.

 
-Phil Richardson, Storyteller and Observer of the Human Condition