Saturday, February 15, 2025, 6:42AM |  29°
MENU
Advertisement
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro in a June 24 file photo.
5
MORE

Pa. AG Shapiro files suit against Sackler family, owners of opioid maker Purdue Pharma

Darrell Sapp/Post-Gazette

Pa. AG Shapiro files suit against Sackler family, owners of opioid maker Purdue Pharma

A day after the announcement of a massive, tentative settlement of perhaps 1,000 lawsuits against opioid maker Purdue Pharma, state Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced Thursday morning that he is suing the company's founders and owners over their role in spurring Pennsylvania's addiction crisis.

The Sackler family, which owns Purdue Pharma, "seems to be concerned with only one thing — keeping their hands on the ill-gotten gains they made while pumping our commonwealth full of OxyContin," Mr. Shapiro said in a statement, referring to the potent oxycodone formulation blamed by some for spurring the opioid epidemic.

"Through our negotiations with Purdue Pharma, it became crystal clear the Sacklers have no intention of taking any ownership for engineering an epidemic that claims the lives of 12 Pennsylvanians each day," he continued.

Advertisement

Mr. Shapiro has been one of the leaders of a group including most of the state attorneys general that has been investigating, and negotiating with, Purdue Pharma and other opioid makers and distributors for years.

Medications, among them many opioids, are stored in the police headquarters of Barberton, Ohio and are slated for destruction, are shown on Sept. 11, 2019.
GEOFF MULVIHILL and DAVE COLLINS
Some states say they'll keep fighting Purdue Pharma in court

His office sued Purdue in May, focusing on what it alleged was a deliberate effort to swamp doctors' offices with sales representatives armed with deceptive claims about the safety and effectiveness of OxyContin.

Wednesday, upon the announcement of a tentative settlement between Purdue, the Sacklers and around half of the 2,000 governmental plaintiffs that are suing it, Mr. Shapiro called that pact “a slap in the face to everyone who has had to bury a loved one due to this family’s destruction and greed.”

“This is far from over,” he said.

Advertisement

He wasted little time in announcing his next step, which a press release from his office Thursday described as a claim "that certain members of the Sackler family are personally liable for the devastation of the opioid crisis because they directed, controlled, and participated in this deadly campaign of deception."

The complaint was filed under seal "as legally required" in Commonwealth Court.

The bulk of the cases against Purdue and other opioid manufacturers and distributors are being handled in the federal court for the Northern District of Ohio, in Cleveland.

A spokeswoman for Purdue said the company had no comment.

In this August 2018 file photo, family and friends who have lost loved ones to overdoses of OxyContin and other opioids protest outside Purdue Pharma headquarters in Stamford, Conn.
Geoff Mulvihill and Dave Collins
Purdue Pharma reaches a tentative opioid-crisis settlement

“The [Sackler] family supports working toward a global resolution that directs resources to the patients, families and communities across the country who are suffering and need assistance," wrote a spokeswoman for members of the Mortimer D. Sackler and Raymond Sackler families, in response to a request for comment on Mr. Shapiro's announcement. "This is the most effective way to address the urgency of the current public health crisis, and to fund real solutions, not endless litigation.”

At least eight Pennsylvania counties are part of the contingent that is pursuing a prompt settlement with Purdue. Those counties include, locally, Beaver, Crawford, Lawrence, Washington and Westmoreland, and are represented by a team of law firms including Robert Peirce & Associates

"It's about time that they admitted responsibility for their role in bringing about this crisis, and this problem," said Robert N. Peirce Jr. on Thursday. "But negotiations are still ongoing. It's too early to give any predictions as to how much is being paid to whom. And we anticipate at least another week of negotiations."nt.

 Allegheny County and the City of Pittsburgh in May 2018 sued eight companies that have been involved in the opioid business.

"We are hopeful that a final settlement agreement can be reached that will provide prompt and significant support to our communities for the epidemic that we believe Purdue – along with other companies – have caused to Allegheny County," wrote county solicitor Andrew Szefi, in an email response to questions. "We’re going to wait to see the finalized proposed settlement terms and then consider our options at that point."

A city spokesman did not directly address whether its attorneys are angling to be part of the emerging settlement.

"Obviously, we filed the lawsuit to seek support for the city and its residents due to the epidemic Purdue and other companies caused, and we hope a final settlement, once it is reached, will provide that," spokesman Timothy McNulty said in an email response to questions.

Mr. Shapiro said that the Sacklers "shamelessly came into our commonwealth and preyed on senior citizens, veterans, and those suffering from substance use disorder.

"The Sacklers' mission to avoid accountability and transparency stops here. The lawsuit I filed on behalf of all Pennsylvanians seeks to require this family of billionaires, who orchestrated opioids into as many doctor’s offices, pharmacies and medicine cabinets as possible, takes responsibility for the pain they caused.”

The settlement announced Wednesday would put Purdue Pharma into bankruptcy, and would entail a payment of $3 billion by the Sacklers to the plaintiffs, followed by another $1.5 billion they would raise by selling another company, Mundipharma. Future profits from the sale of OxyContin would also go to the plaintiffs, raising the potential value of the settlement to a reported $12 billion.

OxyContin — marketed as an almost-addiction-proof opioid — has a special place in the etiology of the opioid epidemic. It is blamed by some for spearheading an increase in opioid prescribing, which primed the pump for the surge in heroin addiction, and the many deaths due to that street drug, painkillers and the super-potent, illicit strains of fentanyl that now contaminate much of the illicit narcotics supply.

In southwestern Pennsylvania, drug overdose deaths peaked at 1,427 in 2017, before dropping to 862 last year.

Rich Lord: rlord@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1542. Twitter: @richelord. 

First Published: September 12, 2019, 11:44 a.m.
Updated: September 12, 2019, 7:38 p.m.

RELATED
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says opioids, including prescription painkillers such as OxyContin and illicit drugs such as fentanyl and heroin, were involved in a record 48,000 deaths in the U.S. in 2017.
Rich Lord
Purdue Pharma 'manufactured' opioid epidemic, according to Pa. suit against OxyContin maker
In this April 5, 2019, file photo, containers depicting OxyContin prescription pill bottles lie on the ground in front of the Department of Health and Human Services' headquarters in Washington as protesters demonstrate against the FDA's opioid prescription drug approval practices.
Rich Lord
What has the opioid epidemic cost states? Billions, researchers say
A gate protects the entrance of the Rooksnest estate near Lambourn, England, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2019. The manor is the domain of Theresa Sackler, widow of one of Purdue Pharma's founders and, until 2018, a member of the company's board of directors. A complex web of companies and trusts are controlled by the family, and an examination reveals links between far-flung holdings, far removed from the opioid manufacturer’s headquarters in Stamford, Conn.
ADAM GELLER
Where did the Sacklers move cash from their opioid maker?
John Hindman, who lost his son to drug use six weeks prior, after the screening of
Rich Lord
Whitehall man's honesty about son's addiction moved CEO, comes to TV Saturday
Judge Thad Balkman reads a summary of his decision in the opioid trial at the Cleveland County Courthouse in Norman, Okla., Monday, Aug. 26, 2019. Balkman ruled in favor of the state of Oklahoma and ordered Johnson and Johnson to pay $572 million to a plan to abate the opioid crisis. (Chris Landsberger/The Oklahoman via AP, Pool)
GEOFF MULVIHILL
What lies ahead following Oklahoma's $572M opioid judgment?
In this June 7, 2013, file photo, West Virginia University President Gordon Gee Gordon Gee gives his retirement speech during a board of trustees meeting in Columbus, Ohio.
JULIE CARR SMYTH
WVU president Gee, Ohio's Kasich create nonprofit to push opioid settlement toward hospitals
SHOW COMMENTS (0)  
Join the Conversation
Commenting policy | How to Report Abuse
If you would like your comment to be considered for a published letter to the editor, please send it to letters@post-gazette.com. Letters must be under 250 words and may be edited for length and clarity.
Partners
Advertisement
The North Shore offices of the Post-Gazette
1
business
Federal judge denies NLRB's injunction attempt against the Post-Gazette
TSA officials display the proper way to transport a gun in checked luggage during a press conference at Pittsburgh International Airport Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025.
2
news
TSA intercepts loaded pink gun at Pittsburgh International Airport
Mark Sevco has been named president of Allegheny Health Network
3
business
Former UPMC executive joins Allegheny Health Network
Justin Fields #2 of the Pittsburgh Steelers looks on from the sideline in the second quarter of a game against the Washington Commanders at Northwest Stadium on November 10, 2024, in Landover, Maryland.
4
sports
Analysis: Steelers could still find a franchise quarterback in Justin Fields, but he’d have to defy history
Mississippi quarterback Jaxson Dart (2) out of the pocket as he looks for an open receiver during the first half of an NCAA college football game, against Mississippi State, Friday, Nov. 29, 2024, in Oxford, Miss. Mississippi won 26-14.
5
sports
Steelers mock draft tracker: Time to talk QBs, including Jaxson Dart and Jalen Milroe
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro in a June 24 file photo.  (Darrell Sapp/Post-Gazette)
In this Aug. 17, 2018, file photo, Christine Gagnon of Southington, Conn., protests with other family and friends who have lost loved ones to OxyContin and opioid overdoses at Purdue Pharma LLP headquarters in Stamford, Conn.  (Jessica Hill/AP)
In this August 2018 file photo, family and friends who have lost loved ones to OxyContin and opioid overdoses protest outside Purdue Pharma headquarters in Stamford, Conn.  (Jessica Hill/AP)
OxyContin, which is made by Purdue Pharma.  (Toby Talbot/AP)
Narcotics Detective Ben Hill, with the Barberton Police Department, shows two bags of opioids and other medications that are stored in their headquarters and slated for destruction Wednesday in Barberton, Ohio.  (Keith Srakocic/AP)
Darrell Sapp/Post-Gazette
Advertisement
LATEST news
Advertisement
TOP
Email a Story