Just as attorneys generals for more than a dozen states inch toward a multibillion-dollar settlement with a drug maker faulted for its big role in the start of the opioid abuse and drug overdose crisis, that health menace is taking a new, deadly turn in the region around the nation’s capital. In Washington, D.C., Maryland,….
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Congresswoman discloses her health emergency to warn against OTC drugs
Just because myriad drugs and supplements are sold over the counter does not mean these pills are safe. They can pose serious health risks and cause major damage, a prominent Midwestern congressman has reminded by sharing her own near-disaster with a well-known OTC drug. Debbie Dingell, a Michigan Democrat, told the Washington Post that she….
Continue Reading‘The Crime of the Century’ documents our lethal opioid tragedy
When accomplished folks who have racked up awards like Oscars, Emmys, and Pulitzers provide their frank appraisal of the roles of Big Pharma, federal regulators, and law enforcement in the opioid abuse and drug overdose epidemic, they don’t mince words. Just consider the title of their new, four-hour, two-part documentary running on HBO: “The Crime….
Continue ReadingU.S. ends confusion and expands prescribing of opioid-fighting medication
Health workers with legal prescribing privileges have gotten newly revised federal guidelines — once again — making it easier for them to help those addicted to powerful opioid painkillers by prescribing buprenorphine, another powerful medication. This action could be beneficial in battling the opioid abuse and drug overdose crisis that ebbed in recent times and then….
Continue ReadingPlutocratic clan offers $1 billion more in bankruptcy bid to end opioid suits
Members of the plutocratic Sackler clan have upped the ante yet again in a bankruptcy court bid to settle thousands of lawsuits targeting Purdue Pharmaceutical, the company long in the family’s grip and blamed for untold misery in the now-resurgent opioid abuse and drug overdose crisis. The latest, and perhaps final plan submitted to the….
Continue ReadingIs killer opioid crisis an ‘afterthought,’ as U.S. struggles with many problems?
Although the Biden Administration may be winning Americans’ approval for its battle against the coronavirus pandemic, drug abuse experts have expressed rising worry that federal efforts are lagging in the fight against a rising health menace: the resurgent opioid abuse and drug overdose crisis. While overdoses for the first time might claim 100,000 U.S. lives….
Continue ReadingBig Pharma’s twist: Billions in opioid settlements convert into huge tax breaks
While too many Americans struggle with skyrocketing prescription drug costs, so much so that a $10 insurance co-payment may be lethally dissuasive, Big Pharma firms are seeking billions of dollars in taxpayer-funded benefits on giant settlements they made for their role in the opioid abuse and drug overdose crisis. Johnson & Johnson and the “big….
Continue ReadingConsultant to pay $573.9 million as consequence of its sketchy opioid advice
The opioid abuse and drug overdose crisis has tarred yet another of the nation’s business titans: McKinsey, a globally renowned consulting firm, has discovered that providing corporate clients sketchy advice about addictive, debilitating, and even lethal prescription medications can have consequences. The firm, which has apologized for its conduct, has agreed to pay $573.9 million….
Continue ReadingPlutocratic Sacklers say sorry but not our fault, when taken to task in hearing
A key component of the American legal system, in the criminal and civil systems, is the opportunity afforded to those most harmed to see those implicated in awful situations take responsibility for their conduct. It can be a key moment for the aggrieved to find closure and a measure of justice. The plutocratic Sackler family….
Continue ReadingConsultants apologize for opioid hype, as pharma payments take more fire
Heaps of ignominy are not in short order for parties that played sketchy roles in fostering the nation’s deadly opioid abuse and drug overdose crisis. The stain has spread now to one of corporate America’s most-favored advisors — the giant McKinsey consulting group. The firm has issued a rare public mea culpa for its work….
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