Sackler Family Robs Peter So They Don’t Have To Pay Paul in Opioid Crisis

sackler-pain-artlyst

A filing to the Supreme Court, in the U.S. State of Arizona, has alleged that the Sackler family “siphoned” billions from the family-owned company, Purdue Pharma to deplete it in order to avoid paying claims connected to the prescription opioid painkiller OxyContin.”

I am anxious for it to go to the Supreme Court and hope it won’t be thrown out – Nan Goldin

Artist Nan Goldin, who currently has an exhibition on view at Tate Modern stated in an article in Artnet News. “I am anxious for it to go to the Supreme Court, and I hope it won’t be thrown out.” She said this test case could set an essential precedent for all the other ongoing lawsuits. “We have been working as a group to claw back the Sackler fortune for some time now.”

“Arizona brought the action because it says it has evidence that the Sacklers, Purdue, and other Defendants were parties in recent years to transfers totalling billions of dollars as it looked clear that Purdue faced enormous expenses for its role in fueling the opioids crisis.”

Purdue Pharma said: “The United States Supreme Court is an improper forum to conduct a trial of the claims being made by Arizona. This petition was filed solely to leapfrog other similar lawsuits, and we expect the Court will see it as such.”

A Sackler family attorney refused to comment. Legal experts say such a filing made directly with the Supreme Court is unusual. “Although the Supreme Court can initially hear lawsuits in which a state is a party, it almost never does so when the lawsuit is between a state and private parties, in contrast to a dispute between two or more states,” said Steve Vladeck, CNN Supreme Court analyst and professor at the University of Texas School of Law.

The Arizona state lawsuit claims that Purdue transferred more than $4 billion to Sackler family members between 2008 and 2016. “We want the Supreme Court to make sure that we hold accountable those individuals who are responsible for this epidemic,” Mark Brnovich, Arizona’s attorney general, told the New York Times. “We allege that the Sacklers have siphoned billions of dollars from Purdue in recent years. They did this while knowing the company was facing massive financial liabilities.”

OxyContin is one of the most addictive painkillers in the history of pharmacology. They advertised and distributed their medication, knowing all the dangers. The Sackler family and their private company, Purdue Pharma, built their empire with the lives of hundreds of thousands. The bodies are piling up. In 2015, in the U.S. alone, more than thirty-three thousand people died from opioid overdoses, half of them from prescription opioids; 80 per cent of those who use heroin or buy fentanyl on the black market began with an opioid prescription. These statistics are growing exponentially.”

In 2018 the crisis was highlighted by the photographer Nan Goldin who wrote an essay in Art Forum stating” The Sacklers made their fortune promoting addiction. OxyContin is one of the most addictive painkillers in the history of pharmacology. They advertised and distributed their medication, knowing all the dangers. The Sackler family and their private company, Purdue Pharma, built their empire with the lives of hundreds of thousands. The bodies are piling up. In 2015, in the U.S. alone, more than thirty-three thousand people died from opioid overdoses, half of them from prescription opioids; 80 per cent of those who use heroin or buy fentanyl on the black market began with an opioid prescription. These statistics are growing exponentially.”

Artist Nan Goldin stated; “I’ve started the group, P.A.I.N. (Prescription Addiction Intervention Now), to hold the Sacklers accountable. To get their ear, we will target their philanthropy. They have washed their blood money through the halls of museums and universities around the world. We demand that the Sacklers and Purdue Pharma use their fortune to fund addiction treatment and education. There is no time to waste.”

Photo © Artlyst

Read More

Visit

Tags

, ,