Opioid Addiction in the US, Heroin and Oxys

oftenreading

Meltdown99 said:

Maybe I'll come back to this debate later.  It's party time in Ontario and Canada and most importantly Toronto...great parade happening in Toronto.  Should check it out...maybe someday Vancouver and BC will win a championship. or maybe not.

By all means, come on back when you wish. I've worked in medium and maximum security correctional facilities in Ontario and BC. Right now I don't work in correctional facilities, but I still work in addictions treatment. BC is by far the better province to live in, and I was so stoked to be able to move back. It would be difficult for me to care less than I do about whether BC ever wins a championship in any sport, though. The sport that I'm passionate about, that I participate in and follow, isn't one that's ever going to lead to a parade; in fact, even thinking about that kind of makes me laugh. 

tempo_n_groove

I’m sure this will be the first of many lawsuits to come out. 
Johnson and Johnson to pay 572 million to Oklahoma for their role in the opioid addiction outbreak. 
https://apple.news/AE4SFETV1RpqPdziK9txr1g

Meltdown99

How come the government organizations (FDA) and politicians who fail to keep checks and balances on the FDA are not being held responsible?  People are foolish to trust that FDA or Health Canada...they do not seem to work for the citizenry.   

mickeyrat

Meltdown99 said:

How come the government organizations (FDA) and politicians who fail to keep checks and balances on the FDA are not being held responsible?  People are foolish to trust that FDA or Health Canada...they do not seem to work for the citizenry.   

its not fda. its dea. gop has gutted most enforcement of high dollar donors like pharma and the distributors.. 

tempo_n_groove

mickeyrat said:

Meltdown99 said:

How come the government organizations (FDA) and politicians who fail to keep checks and balances on the FDA are not being held responsible?  People are foolish to trust that FDA or Health Canada...they do not seem to work for the citizenry.   

its not fda. its dea. gop has gutted most enforcement of high dollar donors like pharma and the distributors.. 

Exactly.  There are reasons Monsanto, Pfizer and Big Pharma get so many things out there for years.  When it finally catches up to them they’ve already made their billions and the penalties are like paying taxes.

No big deal to the companies, on to the next thing.

Watch Dallas Buyers Club.  Here was something that was known to help people but it took years for it to finally be made publicly available.  Cards are all stacked against us.

Meltdown99

mickeyrat said:

Meltdown99 said:

How come the government organizations (FDA) and politicians who fail to keep checks and balances on the FDA are not being held responsible?  People are foolish to trust that FDA or Health Canada...they do not seem to work for the citizenry.   

its not fda. its dea. gop has gutted most enforcement of high dollar donors like pharma and the distributors.. 

Does the FDA regulate drugs?  Did they approve this poison?  Time to start holding those who regulate drugs accountable.  The funniest thing I heard 1 time was from a nurse, Cannabis is bad because it did not spend 20 years being tested in a lab like Pharmaceuticals...she did not have an answer when I stated that Cannabis does not kill but those Pharmaceuticals that spend years in the lab...

And no offence...the democrats have had opportunities to up the funding.

Unless I am told the pharmaceutical is needed to keep me going, I avoid them like the plague.

mickeyrat

Meltdown99 said:

mickeyrat said:

Meltdown99 said:

How come the government organizations (FDA) and politicians who fail to keep checks and balances on the FDA are not being held responsible?  People are foolish to trust that FDA or Health Canada...they do not seem to work for the citizenry.   

its not fda. its dea. gop has gutted most enforcement of high dollar donors like pharma and the distributors.. 

Does the FDA regulate drugs?  Did they approve this poison?  Time to start holding those who regulate drugs accountable.  The funniest thing I heard 1 time was from a nurse, Cannabis is bad because it did not spend 20 years being tested in a lab like Pharmaceuticals...she did not have an answer when I stated that Cannabis does not kill but those Pharmaceuticals that spend years in the lab...

And no offence...the democrats have had opportunities to up the funding.

Unless I am told the pharmaceutical is needed to keep me going, I avoid them like the plague.

up to and for approval under specific use. after that the overprescribing etc falls under DEA.

there are legitimate uses for these opiods under controlled protocols you know.  Quack doctors and greedy distributors, both on the wholesale side and the retail side is what exploded this in complicity with the manufacturers.

mickeyrat

  this is good news..

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/30/health/purdue-sacklers-opioids-settlement.html?action=click&module=Latest&pgtype=Homepage

 

Purdue Pharma’s negotiations to settle thousands of lawsuits over the company’s role in the opioids crisis have turned into a standoff between members of the Sackler family, who own the company, and a group of state attorneys general over how much the family should pay and whether it can continue selling drugs abroad.

The Sacklers are deep in negotiations that, if finalized, would force them to give up ownership of Purdue, the company widely blamed for the onset of the opioid epidemic with its aggressive marketing of the prescription painkiller OxyContin. But they want to keep selling OxyContin and other drugs abroad for as many as seven more years, through another company they own, Mundipharma, based in Cambridge, England.

Some attorneys general, particularly in wealthier states like New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut, are resisting that and other issues related to the foreign business.

“Connecticut demands that the Sacklers and Purdue management be forced completely out of the opioid business, domestically and internationally, and that they never be allowed to return,” said Attorney General William Tong of Connecticut.

Lawyers representing more than 2,000 local governments suing Purdue in federal court have some objections of their own, but are more hopeful that a deal can be reached, according to several people familiar with the negotiations.

A big issue is how much cash the Sacklers would have to pay to settle. In the talks, which have gone on for more than a year, all plaintiffs — cities, counties and tribes as well as states — originally wanted $6 billion. The Sacklers are now offering to pay $3 billion over seven years, plus an additional $1.5 billion, but with significant contingencies. The second payment would depend on the eventual sale of Mundipharma, netting at least $4.5 billion, after taxes, which is not a certainty. The family is aiming to have that sale finance their entire payout.

Some state attorneys general want the $4.5 billion in cash upfront instead and a more expeditious sale of Mundipharma, but at a negotiating session last week in Cleveland, representatives for the Sacklers rejected that, according to a person familiar with the discussion.

Purdue and representatives of the Sackler family declined requests for comment. In a statement earlier this week, Purdue said that “it sees little good coming from years of wasteful litigation and appeals,” adding that the company “believes a constructive global resolution is the best path forward, and the company is actively working with the state attorneys general and other plaintiffs to achieve this outcome.”

continues

mickeyrat

 

The potential settlement deal would have the Sacklers giving up ownership of Purdue and putting it into bankruptcy. A variety of scenarios could then ensue, including its outright liquidation, with the proceeds going to the litigants, or a restructuring of Purdue into a trust with profits going toward paying additional compensation and providing free access to addiction treatment drugs.

Image

Massachusetts attorney general Maura Healey, left, with Wendy Werbiskis, whose son died of an overdose, outside a Boston courthouse earlier this month.CreditCharles Krupa/Associated Press

The negotiations are taking place under the prodding of Judge Dan A. Polster of Federal District Court in Cleveland who is overseeing multi-district litigation involving claims filed by cities, counties, tribes and others. The states, which have cases against the opioid industry pending in their own state courts, are not parties to that litigation. But they were brought into the process at the judge’s urging to settle all claims against Purdue and other manufacturers, distributors and retailers of opioids. The settlement is intended to help compensate state and local governments for medical treatment, law enforcement and emergency costs stemming from addiction and overdoses that have led to hundreds of thousands of deaths in the past two decades.

The talks continue to be “fluid,” as several people familiar with the negotiations characterized them, and the parties are next expected to report to Judge Polster on Wednesday.

News of the possible settlement with the Sacklers and Purdue leaked Wednesday and set off a flurry of discussions, as lawyers jostled for leverage.

All of this is taking place under the threat of a possible Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring by Purdue that, in the absence of a settlement, could leave the states, cities and counties fighting it out for years with creditors of the drug company.

Arriving at a just calculus is extremely difficult. In addition to putting a price tag on Purdue’s responsibility for the public health crisis, lawyers are trying to assess the fortune that the Sacklers made from opioids, the value of proposals on the table, and how the optics of any deal will appear to voters.

Image

Richard Sackler, former chairman and president of Purdue Pharma, in a screengrab taken from a 2015 video deposition.CreditKentucky Attorney General’s Office

Almost every state has filed a lawsuit against Purdue and other opioid manufacturers, with many also naming distributors and retailers. But the states’ priorities differ. States like New York and Massachusetts, who were among the first to name individual Sacklers in their lawsuits, have the staff and financing to conduct their own investigations, and are in a stronger position to hold out. But some states, whose opioid-related budgets are faltering, seem more willing to strike a deal sooner, according to several people familiar with the negotiations.

The negotiations intensified a week ago at the meeting in Cleveland, which some representatives of the Sackler family attended, along with lawyers representing the federal cases as well as about a dozen states, including New York, Massachusetts, Ohio, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Maryland, North Carolina, Texas, New Jersey, Louisiana, Florida and Tennessee.

Elizabeth Burch, a professor at the University of Georgia School of Law who studies complex litigation, said the opioid defendants are fighting legal battles on multiple fronts. That constellation of legal activity may prompt some state attorneys general to balk at entering a global settlement, believing they can individually cut a better deal.

Adding kindling to the fire, Attorney General Dave Yost of Ohio on Friday filed a motion with a federal appeals court, arguing that the consolidated local cases before Judge Polster have “hampered” the ability of his office and other states to negotiate settlements with opioid industry defendants.

Mr. Yost contends states are in a better position to litigate claims and wants to block the start of a bellwether trial in October against opioid manufacturers, distributors and retailers, which is meant to test the strength of local government claims. The looming trial, which currently names Purdue among the defendants, is another factor goading the current talks.

Dogging negotiations with the Sacklers are questions about the family’s fortune and how much money they should pay as part of any settlement.

The Sackler family’s net worth has been estimated by Bloomberg at $13 billion, so paying $3 billion to settle their claims would still leave them with a substantial fortune. And even so, some investigators believe they are worth much more. Earlier this month, the office of the New York State attorney general, Letitia James, sent subpoenas to 33 financial institutions and investment advisers tied to the Sackler family as they seek to trace billions of dollars that prosecutors believe the family took out of Purdue. But the case is unlikely to be resolved soon, leaving the extent of their fortune a mystery.

mickeyrat

 

Purdue has been under scrutiny for years. Back in 2007, the company and three of its executives pleaded guilty to criminal charges that they misled regulators, doctors and patients about the risk of OxyContin addiction and the potential for abuse.

Many observers agree that the Sackler family, which has controlled Purdue, needs to give up their whole network of pharmaceutical companies, not just Purdue.

“They can’t be in this anymore, period,” said Keith Humphreys, a professor at Stanford University and former drug policy adviser to President Obama, adding, “You have to go to the root, which is the family.”

tempo_n_groove

Ty for posting everyone!!!

Meltdown99

Not much can be done about the opioid crisis.  Nice work big pharma.  Should take all these executives responsible for this bullshit and start pumping the product into them...get them assholes addicted to their poison.  

Renfield

Purdue Pharma Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/15/health/purdue-pharma-bankruptcy-opioids-settlement.html

tempo_n_groove

Renfield said:

Purdue Pharma Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/15/health/purdue-pharma-bankruptcy-opioids-settlement.html

I just heard this on the radio.  That is crazy.  I guess they knew that more lawsuits would be coming so time to close up shop.

mickeyrat

tempo_n_groove said:

Renfield said:

Purdue Pharma Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/15/health/purdue-pharma-bankruptcy-opioids-settlement.html

I just heard this on the radio.  That is crazy.  I guess they knew that more lawsuits would be coming so time to close up shop.

no, its part of current settlements. Closing of Perdue and another equivalent in UK.

some states arent agreeing to the setlkement in the works. Largely due to the billions siphoned off by the Sacklers over recent years. States are saying their personal part of the settlement doesnt reflect that well enough.  IIRC they've siphoned off in the neighborhood of 5-6 billion? Settlememt would require them to kick in personally about 1.5 I think it said?

tempo_n_groove

mickeyrat said:

tempo_n_groove said:

Renfield said:

Purdue Pharma Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/15/health/purdue-pharma-bankruptcy-opioids-settlement.html

I just heard this on the radio.  That is crazy.  I guess they knew that more lawsuits would be coming so time to close up shop.

no, its part of current settlements. Closing of Perdue and another equivalent in UK.

some states arent agreeing to the setlkement in the works. Largely due to the billions siphoned off by the Sacklers over recent years. States are saying their personal part of the settlement doesnt reflect that well enough.  IIRC they've siphoned off in the neighborhood of 5-6 billion? Settlememt would require them to kick in personally about 1.5 I think it said?

I read the article and didn't realize that they had settlements in the works. 
The filing for Ch11 is going to shield them from any further lawsuits but it seems that other AG's want to go after the Sacklers' personal assets.  Can they do that?  I thought the whole purpose of filing for Bankruptcy was to be shielded from other debts/lawsuits?  

mickeyrat

tempo_n_groove said:

mickeyrat said:

tempo_n_groove said:

Renfield said:

Purdue Pharma Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/15/health/purdue-pharma-bankruptcy-opioids-settlement.html

I just heard this on the radio.  That is crazy.  I guess they knew that more lawsuits would be coming so time to close up shop.

no, its part of current settlements. Closing of Perdue and another equivalent in UK.

some states arent agreeing to the setlkement in the works. Largely due to the billions siphoned off by the Sacklers over recent years. States are saying their personal part of the settlement doesnt reflect that well enough.  IIRC they've siphoned off in the neighborhood of 5-6 billion? Settlememt would require them to kick in personally about 1.5 I think it said?

I read the article and didn't realize that they had settlements in the works. 
The filing for Ch11 is going to shield them from any further lawsuits but it seems that other AG's want to go after the Sacklers' personal assets.  Can they do that?  I thought the whole purpose of filing for Bankruptcy was to be shielded from other debts/lawsuits?  

would chap 11 be allowed to go through with pending lawsuits in the courts for years ?

tempo_n_groove

mickeyrat said:

tempo_n_groove said:

mickeyrat said:

tempo_n_groove said:

Renfield said:

Purdue Pharma Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/15/health/purdue-pharma-bankruptcy-opioids-settlement.html

I just heard this on the radio.  That is crazy.  I guess they knew that more lawsuits would be coming so time to close up shop.

no, its part of current settlements. Closing of Perdue and another equivalent in UK.

some states arent agreeing to the setlkement in the works. Largely due to the billions siphoned off by the Sacklers over recent years. States are saying their personal part of the settlement doesnt reflect that well enough.  IIRC they've siphoned off in the neighborhood of 5-6 billion? Settlememt would require them to kick in personally about 1.5 I think it said?

I read the article and didn't realize that they had settlements in the works. 
The filing for Ch11 is going to shield them from any further lawsuits but it seems that other AG's want to go after the Sacklers' personal assets.  Can they do that?  I thought the whole purpose of filing for Bankruptcy was to be shielded from other debts/lawsuits?  

would chap 11 be allowed to go through with pending lawsuits in the courts for years ?

That's what I'm confused about.  I believe they did file and settle to avoid having to pay more.  The Ch11 should protect them now.

That is my understanding of it but i guess we will see.

mickeyrat

tempo_n_groove said:

mickeyrat said:

tempo_n_groove said:

mickeyrat said:

tempo_n_groove said:

Renfield said:

Purdue Pharma Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/15/health/purdue-pharma-bankruptcy-opioids-settlement.html

I just heard this on the radio.  That is crazy.  I guess they knew that more lawsuits would be coming so time to close up shop.

no, its part of current settlements. Closing of Perdue and another equivalent in UK.

some states arent agreeing to the setlkement in the works. Largely due to the billions siphoned off by the Sacklers over recent years. States are saying their personal part of the settlement doesnt reflect that well enough.  IIRC they've siphoned off in the neighborhood of 5-6 billion? Settlememt would require them to kick in personally about 1.5 I think it said?

I read the article and didn't realize that they had settlements in the works. 
The filing for Ch11 is going to shield them from any further lawsuits but it seems that other AG's want to go after the Sacklers' personal assets.  Can they do that?  I thought the whole purpose of filing for Bankruptcy was to be shielded from other debts/lawsuits?  

would chap 11 be allowed to go through with pending lawsuits in the courts for years ?

That's what I'm confused about.  I believe they did file and settle to avoid having to pay more.  The Ch11 should protect them now.

That is my understanding of it but i guess we will see.

previous page post dated 8-31 links a nyt article. I posted the whole article.  it lays out some of the scenarios.

so however it ends up shaking out, Purdue Pharma is dead. Question I have would the family be prohibited from starting up again.

mickeyrat

 Purdue Pharma Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy https://nyti.ms/303j7Rw