When it comes to pharmaceutical corruption in the last few years , exhibit A is the opioid crisis which caused more than 500,000 deaths in the US from prescription and illicit opioids between 1999 and 2020 .
In 2020 , Purdue Pharma , who made the notorious opioid OxyContin [ oxycodone ], agreed to pay roughly $ 8.3 billion in fines because it “ knowingly and intentionally conspired and agreed with others to aid and abet ” doctors dispensing medication “ without a legitimate medical purpose .” The company had already paid $ 600 million in fines for downplaying opioid risks in 2007 . According to the Washington Post , “ the medical community and government agencies failed to take effective action , even when it became apparent that these pills were fueling addiction and overdoses and were getting diverted to the streets .”
The Sackler family , who owned the now-bankrupt Purdue Pharma , agreed to pay $ 4.5 billion in opioidrelated settlements . Some of the many scientific and artistic institutions funded by the wealthy , philanthropic family have since erased the Sackler name .