The family dynasty that owns Purdue Pharma is a major benefactor to charity. But
now money from the Sackler family has become radioactive in the world of high-profile nonprofits and museums. Cultural
institutions like the Met and Guggenheim in New York, and the Tate in London have cut ties with the family.
The reason? The
same family that funded major museums and galleries for decades is at the center of the opioid crisis in the United States.
Purdue Pharma created OxyContin, an opioid-based painkiller that many believe helped spur the opioid epidemic, killing thousands across the U.S.
In a statement to CNBC, a spokesperson for the family called the allegations false and unfair, and said the family understood the Met's decision.
Here's how Sackler money became radioactive.
Purdue Pharma was founded in New York City in 1892.
Sixty years later the company was bought by Raymond and Mortimer Sackler. The
private company moved its headquarters to Norwalk, Connecticut, in 1973, and in Stamford, Connecticut, in 2000.
Purdue and its network of independent associated companies currently employ about 5,000 people around the world, according to the company's Web site.
Today it brings in billions of dollars in revenue from drug sales.
Purdue sees itself as a 'pioneer in developing medications for reducing pain a principal cause of human suffering.'
And its roster of drugs includes oxycodone, fentanyl and codeine.
One of the company's best selling medications is OxyContin, which hit the market in 1996.
Purdue announced it would stop promoting the drug to doctors in early 2018. But
previously, the drug was aggressively marketed as a safe pain medication.
Turns out, that's not entirely true. And
that's why the Sackler family stands accused of playing a central role in the opioid epidemic.
More than 47,600 Americans died from opioid overdoses in 2017, according to federal data.
That's more than 130 people a day.
The largest portion of that number died due to prescription opioid abuse.
If you've broken a bone or had surgery, your doctor may have prescribed opioids for pain.
These drugs bind to opioid receptors in the body.
They block feelings of pain and trigger the release of dopamine, and include prescription pills as well as fentanyl and heroin.
Dopamine makes people feel good but the high is short lived.
Since the brain craves more, it can start a vicious cycle.
Simply put, the more opioids you take, the more the brain likes it. And
when your body builds a tolerance, you need higher doses or something stronger to get the same sensation.
Try to stop and the body rebels. Withdrawal
symptoms include aching, fever, diarrhea, vomiting, sweating and chills.
From 1991 to 2011 opioid prescriptions nearly tripled according to IMF Health, a company that provides data to the health-care industry.
The opioid death rate tripled over the same time.
Since then, efforts to tamp down on the availability of prescription opioids has led to an increase in the supply of heroin.
Mexican heroin production increased from 30 metric tons in 2011 to 111 in 2017.
Nearly 80 percent of heroin users started with opioids.
Opioid addiction can occur after only five days of use.
In the 90s there was a realization doctors needed to be more attentive to patients' pain.
Pharmaceutical companies launched a massive campaign to promote opioids as a solution.
At the same time illegal drugs, including heroin and illicit fentanyl were pouring into the country.
When patients' opioid prescriptions ran out, they looked for something stronger or cheaper.
According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, deaths from heroin increased nearly eight fold from 1999 to 2017.
Meanwhile, deaths from manmade opioids like fentanyl increased by 21 times.
In 2007, McKesson Corp.
shipped three million prescription opioid pills to what was the Sav-Rite pharmacy in Kermit, West Virginia.
The town has 400 residents.
That story was from a congressional report delivered in late 2018.
The incident helped push Congress to act.
One of the results was the Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018, sponsored by Senator Lamar Alexander, a Republican from Tennessee.
The bill garnered bipartisan support, even though critics said it fell short in terms of funding.
According to the AMA, the bill will help fight the problem in several ways.
It expands programs to prevent substance abuse and overdoses, increases treatment programs and pledges to stop the flow of illicit drugs into the country by mail.
It also increases funding for research and requires reports from Health and Human Services on opioid prescription dosages.
In October 2018, President Trump signed the bill into law.
Recently, states have seen another unexpected factor that's been a major benefit for addicts seeking help.
Medicaid expansion in states like West Virginia has made treatment available where it wasn't before.
A recent study from policy and research journal, Health Affairs, showed the number who have been diagnosed as opioid abusers under the expansion has doubled.
Meanwhile Harvard and NYU researchers found in 2017 that without Obamacare, more than 200,000 opioid addicts would lose coverage.
So what happens next?
In April 2019, 60 people in five states were indicted, including a number of doctors and pharmacists.
They were charged with the illegal prescribing of more than 32 million pain pills.
Those involved are based in West Virginia, Ohio, Tennessee, Alabama and Kentucky.
There was even a dentist charged with unnecessarily pulling peoples' teeth.
He gave them opioids to deal with the pain.
Meanwhile, Purdue continues to fight a growing number of lawsuits in American courts.
In 2007, the company pleaded guilty to federal charges of misleading doctors, regulators and patients about OxyContin's risks. Purdue
paid more than $600 million in penalties. In
early 2019, the company settled with Oklahoma for $270 million.
The agreement was to settle allegations the company helped spur the opioid crisis.
Purdue denied any wrongdoing and announced a settlement on its website in March.
The release stated, "Purdue Pharma announces landmark agreement with Oklahoma to advanced the treatment of addiction."
Purdue also announced in March the FDA was fast tracking its own nalmefene hydrochloride injections (HCI).
The injections are for the emergency treatment of opioid overdoses.
The company will not profit from HCI, according to the release.
Perdue also faces lawsuits in a number of other states, including Illinois.
And lawsuits have been filed against the Sacklers, themselves. Attorneys
general in New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Utah have all filed suit against family members.
In March, more than 500 cities, counties and Native American tribes filed suit in the Southern District of New York.
Still Perdue continues to deny any role in the crisis.
A company spokesperson told CNBC the charges are "baseless" and "inconsistent with the factual record."
But that hasn't stopped the lawsuits and may force the company to file for bankruptcy protection.