Purdue Pharma pleads guilty to role in opioid crisis as part of deal with DOJ

Purdue Pharma on Tuesday pleaded guilty to criminal charges that it misled the U.S. government over its marketing and distribution of oxycodone (OxyContin). The admission of guilt put an end to an extensive federal investigation that eventually led to a multibillion-dollar settlement between Purdue and the Department of Justice (DOJ). Steve Miller, Purdue’s chairman, acknowledged that the company falsely told DEA it had created a program to prevent oxycodone from being sold on the black market. In reality, Purdue was marketing the drug to more than 100 doctors suspected of illegally prescribing oxycodone. Purdue also pleaded guilty to paying illegal kickbacks to doctors who prescribed oxycodone and to an electronic health records company, Practice Fusion, for targeting physicians with alerts that were intended to increase opioid prescriptions. The plea brought an end to the U.S. government’s case against Purdue, which has filed for bankruptcy protection amid the wave of litigation it faces over its role in the opioid epidemic. Last month, Purdue agreed to plead guilty and face criminal and civil penalties of about $8.3 billion as part of the settlement with DOJ. The settlement included $3.54 billion in criminal fines and $2 billion in criminal forfeiture of profits.