Victims of Opioid Abuse Give Testimony in Sackler Case

FEB 19 2022·Updated MAR 11 2022

Story

Image credit: NPR [via Raw Story]

The Facts

Victims of opioid abuse and their families have given emotional statements in US Bankruptcy Court about the effect of the crisis on their lives.
Al Jazeera
Members of the Sackler family, the owners of OxyContin producer Purdue Pharma, have proposed paying $5.5B-$6B to settle thousands of opiod lawsuits.
NPR
This comes after their original bankruptcy settlement was overturned on appeal last year.
NPR
In exchange, the family hopes to be protected from current and future opioid-related litigation; a provision that prompted the deal to be overturned in the first place.
NPR
The increase (from the original $4.3B) would be used to combat the opioid crisis, and payments would be made over 18 years.
NPR
The Sacklers made billions from the sale of OxyContin, an opioid that has contributed to a crisis linked to more than 500K deaths in the US.
NPR

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

The Sackler family have profiteered from the opioid epidemic. They must be held accountable, and the original settlement didn't go far enough to bring justice to victims. Families like the Sacklers should not be given refuge in bankruptcy court.

nytimes

Narrative B

Though far from perfect, litigious attack jeopardized a settlement that could've provided urgently needed resources for tackling the opioid crisis. If they want to do more to hold the Sacklers accountable, they should pursue criminal charges rather than more money.