Page 17 - HOH

A2 UP FRONT
Wednesday 27 March 2019
OXYCONTIN is the first of many."
Continued from Front But some activists were furi-
Opioids, including heroin ous , saying they were de-
and prescription drugs nied the chance to hold
such as OxyContin, were Purdue Pharma fully ac-
a factor in a record 48,000 countable in public, in front
deaths across the U.S. in of a jury.
2017, according to the "This decision is a kick in
Centers for Disease Control the gut to our community,"
and Prevention. Oklahoma said Ryan Hampton, of Los
recorded about 400 opioid Angeles, who is recovering
deaths that year. State of- from opioid addiction. "We
ficials have said that since deserve to have our day in
2009, more Oklahomans court with Purdue. The par-
have died from opioids ents, the families, the survi-
than in vehicle crashes. vors deserve at least that.
Other states have suffered And Oklahoma stripped
far worse, including West that from us today."
Virginia, with the nation's Purdue Pharma introduced
highest opioid death rate. OxyContin in the 1990s and
It had over 1,000 deaths in marketed it hard to doc-
2017. tors, making tens of billions
In a statement, Purdue of dollars from the drug. But
Pharma said the money the company has been hit
that will go toward ad- with lawsuits from state and
diction studies and treat- local governments trying to
ment in Oklahoma will help hold it responsible for the
people across the country. scourge of addiction.
CEO Craig Landau said the The lawsuits accuse the
company is committed to company of downplay-
"help drive solutions to the ing the addiction risks and
opioid addiction crisis." pushing doctors to increase
Plaintiffs' attorney Paul Han- dosages even as the dan-
ly, who is not involved in the gers became known. Ac-
Oklahoma case but is rep- cording to a court filing,
resenting scores of other Richard Sackler, then senior This Feb. 19, 2013, file photo shows OxyContin pills arranged for a photo at a pharmacy in Mont-
pelier, Vt.
governments, welcomed vice president responsible Associated Press
the deal, saying: "That sug- for sales, proudly told the
gests that Purdue is serious audience at a launch party prescriptions that will bury hear about the settlement. great museums and uni-
about trying to deal with for OxyContin in 1996 that it the competition." Jauire, who lives in Marlbor- versities. In the past few
the problem. Hopefully, this would create a "blizzard of Earlier this month, Purdue ough, Massachusetts, had weeks, as the accusations
Pharma officials acknowl- been organizing a group have mounted, the Tate
edged that they are con- of hundreds of mothers to museums in London and
sidering bankruptcy . But go to the first day of the the Guggenheim Museum
Oklahoma's attorney gen- trial and stand outside with in New York have cut ties
eral said the company photos of their dead chil- with the family, and other
gave assurances it will not dren. She said a complete institutions have come un-
take such a step in the airing of the facts is the only der pressure to turn down
near term. And he said the way to fully hold Purdue to donations or remove the
settlement money is "bank- account. Sackler name.
ruptcy proof" — that is, "it's A settlement is "a huge dis- A Massachusetts court fil-
not at risk in the event Pur- service to the tens of thou- ing made public earlier
due declares bankruptcy." sands of families here in the this year found that Sackler
Lance Lang, a 36-year-old United States who buried family members were paid
recovering user from Okla- a child," she said. "That's at least $4 billion from 2007
homa City, said he is glad blood money from our chil- until last year.
some of the settlement will dren." Purdue Pharma has set-
go toward helping those Members of the Sackler tled other lawsuits over the
still suffering from addiction. family are defendants in years, and three executives
"My heart breaks for those some of the lawsuits but pleaded guilty to criminal
that we've already lost. I've were not actually parties charges in 2007. But this is
buried several myself," said to the Oklahoma case. The the first settlement to come
Lang, who now helps re- company said the fam- out of the surge of litiga-
covering users find housing. ily nevertheless voluntarily tion in the past few years
"But I also know we have contributed to the settle- that focuses largely on the
waiting lists of dozens and ment. "We have profound company's more recent
dozens for our facilities, and compassion for those who conduct.
the state has waiting lists of are affected by addiction," More than 1,400 federal
hundreds and hundreds the family said in a state- lawsuits over the opioid cri-
of people who need help ment. sis have been consolidated
right now." The Sacklers are major do- in front of a single judge in
But Cheryl Juaire, whose nors to cultural institutions, Cleveland who is pushing
23-year-old son Corey died and the family name is the drugmakers and distrib-
of an overdose in 2011, emblazoned on the walls utors to reach a nationwide
said she was devastated to at many of the world's settlement.q