>> The opioid epidemic has claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans. And
finally, we have some admission from Purdue pharma for fueling that epidemic. They have
agreed to plead guilty in their part in fueling this epidemic, and so let me give you the
details on what we know so far about a settlement that they've agreed to.
The company will plead guilty to three counts including conspiracy to defraud the United
States, and violating federal anti kickback laws. The official said, and the agreement
will be detailed in a bankruptcy court filing in federal court. As part of the resolution,
Purdue is admitting that it impeded the DEA by falsely representing that it had maintained
an effective program to avoid drug diversion.
And by reporting misleading information to the agency to boost the company's manufacturing
quotas, the official said. Purdue is also admitting to violating federal anti kickback
laws by paying doctors through a speaking program to induce them to write more prescriptions
for the company's opioids. And for using electronic health record software to influence the prescription
of pain medication, according to the officials.
So they're gonna pay some money as part of this settlement. And to be fair, usually,
when settlements like this happen, it involves a company or a corporation that refuses to
admit guilt. In this case, they're gonna have to pay money, and they have admitted guilt.
Purdue will make a direct payment to the government of $225 million, which is not that much money,
which is part of a larger though, $2 billion criminal forfeiture.
In addition to that forfeiture, Purdue also faces a $3.54 billion criminal fine, though
that money probably will not be fully collected because it will be taken through a bankruptcy
which includes a larger number of other creditors, including thousands of state and local governments.
Purdue will also agree to $2.8 billion in damages to resolve it's civil liability.
So they are admitting to criminal guilt here, which we're making progress, I'd like to see
more. >> Yeah, so it gives people a little bit of
hope, obviously, cuz this is a complex thing that people have been talking about dealing
with for a very long time, and have done very little.
It was actually one of the pretty big focus of the 2016 campaign, during the campaign,
and then as soon as the election happened, nobody seemed to care about it anymore. And
one of the biggest reasons that I think morally, this really bothers people, the activity of
this corporation is that, like fundamentally, all of this is supposed to be about doing
no harm.
And they've done tons of harm, both in terms of the actual damage that has been done the
over prescription, but then also causing so much chaos for people who legitimately need
access to the medication. Because now, the entire thing is clouded by so much unethical
behavior at the corporate level for literally years that it makes everything suspect.
And if you're one of the doctors who is receiving payoffs to over encourage this sort of thing,
that's a massive problem. If you're one of the executives doing that, that's a gigantic
manipulative, dishonest thing. But if you're just a regular person that's been caught in
the crossfire, and you have some serious issues that you need paid pain medication for.
Yeah, it's just they've caused this extra layer of hell It's insult to injury.
>> Yeah, no, I'm really happy that you brought up that perspective because it has created
a difficult situation for people to rightfully access drugs that they've rightfully been
prescribed. And you've seen this kind of across the board with some substances that have been
abused by some, right?
So there are people who legitimately have issues with hyperactivity disorder, right?
Attention and all that and they need Adderall, for instance, and they can't access it as
a result of people abusing it. And I think that, that part of the story does get left
out of the narrative when it's covered in the media.
So this type of abuse harms everyone across the board. People who end up getting addicted
to these drugs, and then people who actually genuinely need the drugs in order to maintain
at least some quality of life >> Yeah.
>> And so I wanna talk a little bit about what this guilty plea really means.
Before I do that, we have a quick video to show you, let's take a look.
>> The global settlement announced today, involves the company pleading guilty to three
felony counts for defrauding the United States, and violating the anti kickback statute from
2009 to 2017. In addition, to the company having agreed to plead guilty to these three
felony counts, the company has agreed to a $3.544 billion criminal fine, and a $2 billion
criminal forfeiture amount.
Further on top of those, to resolve its civil liability, Purdue Pharma, has agreed to $2.8
billion in damages to the United States. Additionally, members of the Sackler family have agreed
to pay, $225 million in a civil settlement that will provide civil releases only. The
company's bankruptcy in the Southern District of New York involves many creditors, from
some private creditors to federal, state, government and local creditors.
In general, the creditors are aiming to ensure that nearly all of the proceeds of the bankruptcy
go to opioid abatement programs, and the Department of Justice generally supports that goal.
>> So the Sackler family is gonna have to spend some of their own money on this settlement.
I don't think that's good enough, they should be in prison, period.
So many Americans are dead as a result of their disgusting greed. And so that's part
of the reason why this announcement, it's something, but it doesn't go far enough. It
reminds me a lot of what the country experienced after the 2008 economic collapse. No one went
to prison for destroying the lives of so many Americans, and it's so frustrating to see
this happen over and over again.
I would like to see the Sackler family in prison. However, this deal does not release
the company's executives or owners, members of the wealthy Sackler family from criminal
liability, and the criminal investigation is ongoing. So is it likely that they're going
to serve any time behind bars? No, but apparently, this investigation is ongoing.
We'll see what could happen. The Sacklers will lose all control over their company.
A move already in the works, and Purdue will become a public benefit company. Meaning,
it will be governed by a trust that has to balance the trust interest against those of
the American public, and public health officials set.
And finally, a statement from Purdue, Purdue deeply regrets getting caught, and except,
they didn't say that. Purdue deeply regrets and accept responsibility for the misconduct
detailed by the Department of Justice in the agreed statement of facts. So that's where
we are with that story.