Attorney General Mark Herring has filed a legal objection to Purdue Pharma’s authorization request for its $38 million dollar incentive, bonus, and severance plans.
Purdue made this request just two weeks after declaring bankruptcy in the face of multiple multi-billion dollar lawsuits for their role in creating and prolonging the opioid epidemic.
“The fact that Purdue Pharma thought it was appropriate to give their executives $38 million in bonuses while they are in the middle of numerous multi-billion dollar lawsuits shows they are truly clueless about the damage and hurt they have caused Americans,” said Herring. “This money should be going towards helping the families and communities that have been devastated by the opioid crisis, not the executives whose actions helped to create and prolong it. Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family must be held accountable for the heartbreak they have caused across Virginia and around the country.”
In June 2018, Herring filed suit against Purdue Pharma for its role in creating and prolonging the opioid crisis through false claims about the purported safety, efficacy, and benefits of its opioids, including OxyContin. The suit details the scale of the operation, the lies Purdue Pharma told about the dangers of their drugs, and the sales and marketing tactics used by Purdue to push as many opioid prescriptions as possible.
Last month, Herring filed suit against members of the Sackler Family, owners of Purdue Pharma, for their role in creating and perpetuating the opioid crisis, and for fraudulently taking billions of dollars from Purdue Pharma in an attempt to put money beyond the reach of the Commonwealth of Virginia and other parties who may be entitled to damages
The heroin and prescription opioid epidemic has been a top priority for Herring. He and his team continue to attack the problem with a multifaceted approach that includes enforcement, education, prevention, and legislation to encourage reporting of overdoses in progress, expand the availability of naloxone, and expand access to the Prescription Monitoring Program. He has supported federal efforts to improve the availability of treatment and recovery resources and made prescription drug disposal kits available across the Commonwealth.
Herring recently outlined his recommended next steps for combating the crisis, focusing on law enforcement initiatives, support from the medical community, and recovery, treatment, prevention and education. He and his team also continue to participate in a multistate investigation into the practices of additional drug manufacturers and distributors to determine what role they may have played in creating or prolonging the crisis and what accountability they should face.
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