After bankruptcy filing, Purdue Pharma may not be off hook
OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma and its owners expressed sympathy but not responsibility for the nation’s opioid crisis as the company filed for bankruptcy protection late Sunday night, part of a move to settle some 2,600 lawsuits — most from state and local governments.
“Like families across America, we have deep compassion for the victims of the opioid crisis,” Sackler family members said in the statement, which called the settlement plan a “historic step towards providing critical resources that address a tragic public health situation.”
But the filing may not get either the drugmaker or the Sacklers off the legal hook.
About half the states and lawyers representing at least 1,000 local governments have agreed to the tentative settlement, which the company says could be worth $10 billion to $12 billion over time and would include at least $3 billion from the Sackler family. The deal also calls for handing the company over to trustees and giving future profits from OxyContin and drugs in development to creditors.
But some of the states that are holding out made it clear last week that they intend to object to the deal in bankruptcy court and seek to continue their lawsuits against members of the Sackler family in state courts.
“My office is prepared to hold the Sackers accountable, regardless of whether or not Purdue declares bankruptcy,” Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said in a statement last week.
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