The Sackler Family – A Secretive Billion Dollar Opioid Empire

Summary

The video script delves into the Sackler family's role in the opioid epidemic, detailing how their company, Purdue Pharma, aggressively marketed the painkiller OxyContin, contributing to widespread addiction and overdose deaths. It explores the family's tactics, from influencing medical professionals to lobbying for favorable regulations, and their subsequent legal battles and philanthropic endeavors. The narrative questions the ethics of profiting from an epidemic and highlights the ongoing struggle for accountability and solutions.

Takeaways

• 😷 The Sackler family, through Purdue Pharma, played a significant role in the opioid epidemic in the United States, promoting the painkiller OxyContin despite knowing its addictive nature.
• 💊 OxyContin was marketed aggressively, with Purdue Pharma employing a vast sales force and using deceptive practices to downplay the drug's addictive potential to doctors and patients.
• 📈 The Sackler family amassed a multibillion-dollar fortune from the sales of OxyContin, even as the drug contributed to a public health crisis with hundreds of thousands of deaths.
• 🏥 The opioid epidemic has been linked to increased rates of addiction and overdose, with Purdue Pharma accused of prioritizing profits over patient well-being.
• 🚑 OxyContin's addictive nature became evident soon after its release, but Purdue Pharma allegedly continued to mislead about the risks, even internally acknowledging higher addiction rates than publicly stated.
• 🤝 Purdue Pharma allegedly influenced the medical community by paying clinicians to speak on their behalf and encouraging the prescription of opioids for a wider range of patients.
• 💸 The Sackler family has a history of philanthropy, with their name associated with numerous cultural and educational institutions, which has been called into question due to the source of their wealth.
• 📉 In response to the crisis, Purdue Pharma has faced numerous lawsuits and settlements, though the Sackler family has largely avoided direct legal repercussions.
• 🛑 Attempts to reformulate OxyContin to make it less susceptible to abuse may have inadvertently driven users to more dangerous opioids like heroin.
• 🏛 There is growing public backlash against the Sackler family, with cultural institutions beginning to reject their donations and the family's reputation being increasingly scrutinized.
• 🌐 The Sackler family's actions have sparked a global conversation about corporate responsibility, addiction, and the ethics of profiting from a public health crisis.

Q & A

What is the Sackler family's connection to the opioid epidemic?

The Sackler family is partly responsible for the opioid epidemic due to their involvement with the drug maker Purdue Pharma and their infamous opioid painkiller, OxyContin. Their aggressive marketing strategies and downplaying of addiction risks contributed to the widespread use and abuse of the drug.

How has the opioid epidemic affected the United States according to the transcript?

The opioid epidemic has led to just under 50,000 deaths per year, making drug overdoses the leading cause of death for people under 50 in the United States. It has also caused countless lives to be destroyed through addiction.

What was the role of Arthur Sackler in the pharmaceutical industry?

Arthur Sackler was an advertising pioneer in pharmaceuticals, being the first to convince the Journal of the American Medical Association to run a color ad brochure. He also made Valium the first drug to pass 100 million in sales by marketing it for a wide range of ailments.

What was the initial purpose of MS Contin, and how did Purdue Pharma expand its use?

MS Contin was initially developed for hospice care to help terminally ill patients manage pain. Purdue Pharma expanded its use to the general market with the release of OxyContin, which was a stronger and more addictive version of MS Contin.

How did Purdue Pharma's marketing strategy contribute to the opioid crisis?

Purdue Pharma employed armies of sales reps, paid off doctors, lobbied for favorable regulations, and used aggressive marketing to push OxyContin as a solution for a wide range of pain issues, leading to over-prescription and addiction.

What was the FDA's role in the approval of OxyContin and its marketing claims?

The FDA approved OxyContin and allowed Purdue Pharma to market the drug with claims that its delayed absorption would reduce the probability of abuse, despite evidence suggesting a higher addiction rate than advertised.

How did Purdue Pharma handle the issue of OxyContin's addictive nature?

Instead of addressing the addictive nature of OxyContin, Purdue Pharma blamed patients for not taking the drug as directed and continued to push for higher dosages, which increased the risk of addiction.

What was the impact of Purdue Pharma's actions on the medical community and patients?

Purdue Pharma's actions led to widespread prescription of OxyContin, addiction among patients, and a significant increase in overdose deaths. They also corrupted the medical community by paying off doctors and influencing regulations.

What steps has Purdue Pharma taken to mitigate the opioid crisis they contributed to?

Purdue Pharma reformulated OxyContin to make it harder to abuse by snorting or injecting, but this may have led some users to switch to other, harder opioids like heroin. They have also faced numerous lawsuits and settlements.

How have the Sackler family's philanthropic efforts been affected by the opioid crisis?

The Sackler family's philanthropic efforts have been tainted by the crisis, with some museums and institutions rejecting their donations and the family facing public backlash for their role in the epidemic.

What are some of the broader implications and potential solutions discussed in the script?

The script discusses the need for medical reforms to prevent companies from misleading the public about drug risks, the importance of understanding addiction, and the potential role of alternative treatments like medical cannabis in addressing the opioid crisis.

Outlines

00:00

🔍 The Sackler Family and the Opioid Epidemic

This paragraph introduces the Sackler family's role in the opioid crisis, highlighting their responsibility for the widespread addiction and death toll linked to their company's drug, OxyContin. It discusses the family's pursuit of wealth at the expense of public health, the scale of the epidemic in the United States, and the connection between opioid prescriptions and addiction. The paragraph sets the stage for a deeper dive into the Sackler's actions and the impact of their pharmaceutical empire.

05:02

💊 The Genesis of OxyContin and its Marketing Tactics

The second paragraph delves into the development and marketing of OxyContin by Purdue Pharma, detailing the company's strategies to push the drug onto the market. It discusses the initial use of MS Contin in hospice care and the subsequent release of OxyContin as a stronger alternative. The paragraph also covers the misinformation campaign that downplayed the risk of addiction, the company's aggressive marketing to healthcare professionals, and the corruption within the supply chain that contributed to the epidemic.

10:04

📈 Purdue Pharma's Expansion and the Spread of Addiction

This section examines Purdue Pharma's tactics to expand the use of OxyContin beyond cancer patients, leading to a surge in prescriptions and addiction rates. It describes how the company manipulated regulations, incentivized doctors to prescribe the drug, and capitalized on the trust patients have in their healthcare providers. The paragraph also highlights the company's targeting of vulnerable populations and the consequences of Purdue's actions, including the increase in overdose deaths and the transition to even more dangerous substances like heroin.

15:05

🚨 The Fallout and Legal Battles of Purdue Pharma

The fourth paragraph discusses the legal challenges Purdue Pharma faced as the addiction crisis unfolded. It outlines the numerous lawsuits, settlements, and the company's evasive tactics to avoid accountability. The paragraph also reveals the company's internal knowledge of the drug's addictive nature and the subsequent attempts to reformulate OxyContin to mitigate abuse, which inadvertently led to an increase in heroin use.

20:06

🌐 Purdue's International Ambitions and the Sackler Family's Philanthropy

This section explores Purdue Pharma's plans to expand into international markets and the Sackler family's philanthropic endeavors. It raises questions about the ethics of their donations, especially in light of the opioid crisis, and discusses the growing public backlash against the family's name. The paragraph also touches on the family's attempts to distance themselves from the crisis and the ongoing debate about their responsibility for the epidemic.

25:07

🌿 The Search for Solutions and the Road to Recovery

The final paragraph focuses on the efforts to address and mitigate the opioid crisis. It discusses the role of the US government in providing emergency response tools, the use of alternative treatments like cannabis, and the importance of medical reforms to prevent similar crises in the future. The paragraph concludes with a call to action to learn from the past and a tribute to those working to help those affected by the epidemic.

Keywords

💡Epidemic

An epidemic refers to a sudden, widespread occurrence of a particular disease in a community at a particular time. In the context of the video, the term is used to describe the rapid and extensive spread of opioid addiction in the United States, which has been termed the 'worst public health epidemic' in the country's history.

💡Sackler family

The Sackler family is a powerful and wealthy family that owns Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin, an opioid painkiller. The video discusses the family's significant role in the opioid epidemic, highlighting their pursuit of wealth at the expense of public health and their subsequent efforts to distance themselves from the crisis.

💡Opioid

Opioids are a class of drugs that include prescription painkillers like OxyContin, as well as illegal drugs like heroin. The video emphasizes the role of opioids, particularly OxyContin, in causing widespread addiction and death in the United States, making it a central theme of the crisis discussed.

💡OxyContin

OxyContin is a brand name for the opioid painkiller oxycodone, which is the focus of the video as the primary drug responsible for the opioid epidemic. The script details how the Sackler family's aggressive marketing of OxyContin contributed to the crisis, leading to addiction and overdose deaths.

💡Addiction

Addiction, in the context of the video, refers to the compulsive use of a substance despite harmful consequences. The script describes how the widespread prescription of opioids, including OxyContin, led to a significant number of people becoming addicted, resulting in a public health crisis.

💡Purdue Pharma

Purdue Pharma is the pharmaceutical company owned by the Sackler family that developed and marketed OxyContin. The video discusses the company's unethical practices, such as misleading doctors and patients about the drug's addictive potential and engaging in aggressive marketing tactics to increase sales.

💡Overdose

An overdose occurs when a person consumes a harmful or lethal amount of a substance, in this case, opioids. The script highlights the tragic reality of opioid overdoses, which have become a leading cause of death among people under 50 in the United States.

💡Marketing

Marketing, in the context of the video, refers to the strategies and tactics used by Purdue Pharma to promote OxyContin. The script describes how the company employed deceptive marketing practices, including misrepresenting the drug's addictive potential and targeting vulnerable populations.

💡Lobbying

Lobbying is the act of attempting to influence decisions made by officials in government, typically legislators or members of regulatory bodies. The video discusses how Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family engaged in lobbying to secure favorable regulations and policies that would benefit their drug sales.

💡Class-action lawsuit

A class-action lawsuit is a legal action taken by a large group of people who have suffered similar harm from the same issue. The script mentions that Purdue Pharma faced numerous class-action lawsuits due to their deceptive practices regarding OxyContin, often settling out of court to avoid public scrutiny.

💡Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy is a legal status for individuals or entities that are unable to repay their outstanding debts. The video suggests that Purdue Pharma is considering filing for bankruptcy as a strategy to protect the company's assets amidst the thousands of lawsuits it faces for its role in the opioid epidemic.

Highlights

The Sackler family is implicated in the opioid epidemic, with their company Purdue Pharma's drug OxyContin being a major contributor.

Opioids, including OxyContin, are responsible for nearly 50,000 deaths per year in the United States.

The Sackler family has made a multibillion-dollar empire from the sale of OxyContin, despite its addictive properties.

Purdue Pharma's aggressive marketing strategies, including employing armies of sales reps and paying off doctors, contributed to the widespread use of OxyContin.

High prescription rates of opioids correlate with high overdose rates, indicating a direct link between availability and abuse.

The Sackler family has invested in prestigious institutions worldwide, distancing their name from the controversial OxyContin.

Arthur Sackler pioneered advertising in pharmaceuticals, using research papers to leverage the marketing of drugs like Valium.

MS Contin, a precursor to OxyContin, was initially used for hospice care but was later marketed for general use, leading to addiction issues.

Purdue Pharma's internal studies showed a 13% addiction rate for OxyContin, contradicting their public claims of a less than 1% rate.

The FDA approved a claim that OxyContin's delayed absorption would reduce the probability of abuse, despite evidence of corruption.

Purdue Pharma targeted poor areas with high labor work, where instances of workplace injury led to higher uses of OxyContin.

The company recorded information about prescription quantities to target doctors who prescribed the most pills.

Purdue faced numerous lawsuits, often settling out of court to avoid public record and testimonies from executives.

In response to the crisis, Purdue reformulated OxyContin to be harder to abuse, but this may have led to an increase in heroin use.

The Sackler family has been largely shielded from legal repercussions, despite their significant involvement in Purdue Pharma's operations.

Purdue's lobbying efforts have secured the continued sale of OxyContin without generic competition, extending their profits.

The company has expanded into new markets and is reportedly considering bankruptcy to protect assets amidst thousands of lawsuits.

Protests and rejections of Sackler donations in the art world indicate a growing public awareness and backlash against the family's role in the opioid crisis.

The opioid crisis has sparked national efforts to address addiction, including the use of overdose-reversal drugs and medical reforms.

Transcripts

we are in the middle of an epidemic an

epidemic in fact it's called the worst

public health epidemic in our history as

eight members of the Sackler family

caused much of the opioid epidemic and

the case is shining a spotlight on the

powerful family behind the drug maker

they were all hell-bent on becoming

super rich imagine a medical industry

that's supposed to keep a nation healthy

but becomes so completely corrupt that

it causes an epidemic this has become a

reality in the United States where

opioids of course just under 50,000

deaths per year according to recent

figures and that's just the tip of the

iceberg countless other lives have been

destroyed through addiction in the

United States drug overdoses of a

leading cause of death and people under

50 that's a lot to take in but imagine

if most of this tragedy was caused by

one secretive family working behind the

scenes once again this is a reality that

families name is Sackler the Sackler

family is not only partly responsible

for the epidemic but has also made a

multibillion-dollar Empire from it you

may not know about them but you've

surely heard of oxycontin before welcome

to the story of how billionaires and

doctors became the drug dealers that

caused an epidemic

you are watching ColdFusion TV the

opioid epidemic in the United States was

caused by a variety of factors but one

of the main ones is the involvement of

the Sackler family and their infamous

opioid painkiller oxycontin in 2017 when

over 100 people per day were dying

President Trump declared the opioid

crisis and national emergency he is the

problem patients are often given strong

painkillers when in hospital for surgery

or chronic pain while the drugs are life

enabling for many patients to avoid

excruciating pain from injury or

otherwise many fall into addiction

cycles from withdrawals some people

graduate from prescription

pharmaceuticals onto cheaper and more

potent alternatives like heroin or

fentanyl the cases and causes come from

far and wide but research indicates that

there is a strong correlation between

regions of high opioid prescription

rates and high overdose rates and if you

look at it four of five injectable drug

users started getting opioids whether it

be oxycontin prescription or

non-prescription pill taking so there is

a direct correlation between the two

annually more than 214 million

prescriptions for opioid pain have been

given out with more than 11 million

people abusing their medication but how

did this problem get so catastrophic

enter the sackless the cycle has pushed

oxycontin to everyday people who had

little use for the drug they corrupted

the entire supply chain employing armies

of sales reps paying off doctors

lobbying for favorable regulation and

making billions while masses fell into

devastating addiction but in care much

for the addictive properties of their

drugs they were more concerned with

their bottom line

the name is everywhere yet not many

people know about them the Sackler

family have invested a substantial

portion of their 14 billion dollar net

worth into many museums art galleries

and universities the world-famous Louvre

museum in Paris has a Sackler wing Kate

Middleton was stunned when she opened

the Sackler courtyard in the Victoria

and Albert Museum which consists of

11,000 handmade porcelain tiles London's

famous Gothic church Westminster Abbey

even has a window and named after the

sackless while the family is happy to

put their name on any prestigious

institution that will receive their

money it's a name that is far removed

from their golden product oxycontin the

reason why will soon be very obvious so

to understand the cycle isn't for we

must first look at the Sackler story the

story of the Sackler starts in 1952 when

three psychiatrist brothers Arthur

Mortimer and Raymond purchased a small

pharmaceutical company called Purdue

together they co-authored over a hundred

research papers on the biochemistry of

mental illness

Arthur Sackler doubled as an advertising

pioneer in pharmaceuticals perhaps by

using his research papers as leverage it

was the first to convince the Journal of

the American Medical Association to run

an ad brochure in color Arthur went on

to make valium the first drug to pass

100 million sales he did this by

marketing it as a drug to cover all

kinds of ailments with a made-up term he

called psychic tension previously that

kind of drug was strictly only for

anxiety so with the introduction of the

invented idea of psychic tension it

could be prescribed to a much wider

market almost anyone could fit the

symptoms not just anxiety sufferers by

this stage are classic LA was inducted

into the medical advertising Hall of

Fame during the 1980s a recent movement

in medicine was taking place it was

called hospice the hospice sector takes

care of the terminally ill and

end-of-life patients around this time

the cyclist company Perdue would release

a morphine based pill called MS Contin

that could help cancer patients sleep in

the hospice market addiction wasn't an

issue because the patients would soon

pass Perdue would take this concept one

step further they would release MS

Contin

general use unfortunately MS Contin

would be the precursor to the drug that

would help create an epidemic in the

United States MS Contin became the

benchmark for pain relief among cancer

patients during the 1980s several papers

and articles claimed that the link

between opioids and addiction was

minimal and previously overstated a

letter published to the New England

Journal of Medicine stated that the risk

of addiction was less than 1% even

though this letter was later attracted

by the author it didn't stop over 600

citations at the letter in medical

journals the misinformation had already

spread and it was difficult to stop

advertising genius and co-founder of

Purdy

Arthur Sackler had a nephew named

Richard Richard would later become the

president of Purdue but got his start as

a research scientist in the company

Richard would constantly be

brainstorming ideas trying to find new

uses for MS Contin much like his uncle

Arthur he was heavily interested in the

commercial and marketing side of the

business

Purdue's former executive director of

product management recalled that Richard

didn't always work for the research

results Richard Sackler would like to

become the president of the company in

1999 and co-chair in 2003 his uncle and

father became the co-ceos of Purdue

within Purdue Richard was an avid micro

manager he would send out bulletins

which halfway through it read if you're

reading this call my secretary and he

would leave secret passwords in the

texts based on which sales reps called

the secretary and delivered the password

Richard would know exactly who was

reading the bulletins and who wasn't

during the 1990s the company realized

that they needed to do something about

MS Contin the patent was set to expire

by the end of the decade in addition the

use of morphine as an end-of-life

medication stigmatized the drug from

being more widely available the company

moved to make a new drug called

oxycontin with the active ingredient

oxycodone replacing the morphine many

doctors falsely believe that oxycodone

was weaker than morphine the truth was

the active ingredient in oxycontin

oxycodone was in fact 50% stronger than

morphine later in an unpublished study

by Purdue in 1999 the company found that

the addiction rate was 13% not 1% the

FDA even approved a claim the

oxycontin's delayed absorption would

reduce the probability of

abuse the FDA examiner he was involved

in the approval of this claim left the

FDA shortly and within two years had

accepted a role at Purdue sadly this

move hints at corruption in 2015

Purdue was granted FDA approval to

market the drug to children as young as

11

almost immediately after oxycontin was

released the cases of addiction became

apparent but rather than admit that drug

was addictive the company simply blame

people for not taking the drug as

directed even Purdy themselves had to

fire one of their secretaries after she

became addicted to oxycontin so the

question has to be asked why was the use

and abuse of oxycontin so widely spread

well it wasn't by accident the company

knew exactly what they were doing Purdue

strategy for marketing their new drug

oxycontin began in 1995 first the

company focused the drug on the same

marketers MS Contin cancer patients the

move was made to win wide regulatory

acceptance and the integration of the

drug into medical programs the company

began their targeted advertisements on

health professionals during this stage

sales representatives were encouraged to

lie about the addictive nature of the

drug that our best strongest pain

medicines are the opioids but these are

the same drugs that have a reputation

for causing addiction and other terrible

things now in fact the rate of addiction

amongst pain patients who are treated by

doctors is much less than 1% they don't

wear out they go on working they do not

have serious medical side effects and so

these drugs which I repeat are our best

strongest pain medications should be

used much more than they are for

patients in pain then things got really

dirty Purdy then began paying off all

the links in the supply chain

distributors were guaranteed rebates

pharmacists were given refunds and

patients were given coupons for starter

suppliers academia also got their share

in grants medical journals were even

making money from advertising the drug

politicians were given campaign

donations from both Purdue and the

Sackler family but the most important

link in the whole chain was the doctors

after all they were the ones who use

their discretion on what

describe patience Purdue had speaking

events where doctors would be flown in

to so-called seminars which were

essentially golfing trips thousands of

clinicians were paid to speak at

conferences on the company's behalf

prominent doctors on the Purdue payroll

played down the effects of opioids

calling them a gift from nature and

stated that the notion that opioids

caused addiction was a medical myth

during a nine-year stretch from 2006 to

2015

Purdue and other drug manufacturers in

the industry have spent almost 900

million dollars in political payments

and lobbying

perdy lobbied and encourage regulations

that require doctors to ask patients to

rate their pain on a scale of one to ten

this gave them a more quantifiable and

tangible reason to prescribe opioids the

company was trying to make oxycontin a

viable treatment for non cancer patients

an excerpt from a squire who did a piece

in the sackless reads the company

rebranded pain relief as a sacred Rite a

universal narcotic entitlement available

not only to the terminally ill but to

every American by 2001 and your

oxycontin sales had surged past one

billion dollars

business was booming in the five-year

period between 1996 and 2001 in the

United States

oxycontin grew from 300,000

prescriptions to almost 6 million opioid

abuse cases began rising to the surface

and studies which showed direct

correlations between the location of the

cases and the volume of opioid

prescriptions in that area Purdue even

targeted poor areas with high labor work

the higher instances of workplace injury

led to higher uses of oxycontin the

company also recorded information about

prescription quantities that individual

doctors were writing sadly this was so

that the sales reps would have a better

idea of which doctors to target like

casinos targeting clients that would

spend the most

perdy was targeting doctors that would

prescribe the most people trust their

doctor and they think that the doctor is

prescribing things appropriately and

monitoring them appropriately and they

think that if the bottle says take it in

such and such a way that is perfectly

okay to do that it is now possible to

find regions in the country where the

amount of prescriptions is more than the

actual population of the region doctors

would be arrested in the hundreds for

running clinics which prescribe pills to

patients without a legitimate reason

these were often called pill mills the

purdue company not only knew what they

were doing but they were happy about it

the company's memos between sales reps

read dollars dollars dollars

it's Bonus Time in the neighborhood some

of the better sales reps were earning

six-figure commissions with the company

paying out 40 million dollars in bonuses

in 2001 but for the Sackler family and

Purdy things weren't going to stay so

rosy

by this stage there was mounting

criticism of oxycontin but Purdue still

managed to make things even worse the

effects of oxycontin was supposed to

last 12 hours enough for a good night's

rest

however often the effects are only

present for eight hours now / you could

have done one of two things increase the

frequency of the dose or increase the

dosage and increase the potential for

addiction they did the latter sales reps

was strictly instructed to inform

doctors to increase the dosage amounts

instead of the frequency this created

the perfect cycle for addiction the

increased dosage would make the patient

feel the effects of withdrawal for a

short period and then they would have to

take another pill to put them at ease

again

this led patients down the slope of

being prescribed more than they needed

as their tolerance is cru they fell

deeper into addiction every night on the

news you'd hear someone dying in the

state or in other states because of oxy

cotton and it was so addictive

and they knew that pharmaceuticals knew

that to bring the same I have to show

you the real impact of opioid withdrawal

from the inside with this you can gain

an empathetic view and understand why so

many people don't make it out family

time is something Travis reader does not

take for granted the Johns Hopkins

University bioethics professor soaks up

every moment he can that's because two

years ago prescription opioids stole a

chapter of his life 2015 a serious

motorcycle accident left Travis with a

crushed foot he would have six surgeries

to fix it including a transplant from

his thigh requiring large amounts of

pain medication it was had a follow-up

doctor's appointment with the initial

trauma surgeon the guy who saved the

foot and he's the one who asked me about

my pain level and my drugs and he's like

oh you're on a lot of opioids you

probably need to think like it

Travis says his doctor suggested he

begin weaning off of the drugs over four

weeks he says three days in he was going

through serious withdrawal I felt like I

got the flu my temperature kind of went

haywire

I couldn't sleep very well she watched

him get worse every day

uncontrollable crying you know they

often he would just burst into tears

like you know he couldn't sleep

Travis reached out to more than a dozen

of his doctors some told him to take

stool softeners and drink lots of water

but no one could tell him how to get out

of the withdrawal hell he was in hey I'm

really in trouble here I'm feeling

really bad it's that bad go back on the

drugs Travis says he is not anti opioids

and believes they do have a place but

doctors need to prescribe them with a

plan the failure wasn't not following up

never telling me what to look forward to

in my experience

okay withdrawal was the worst feeling

I've ever had

hands down I have vivid memories of

being sick in my bed sweating with the

covers on and freezing with the covers

off I was constantly sick I vomited

almost every single morning it's

something that I would never want to go

back to you can die straight up your

heart can explode for not having it you

can die because when you don't have it

your blood pressure goes up that is why

a lot of people's heart feels like it's

pound our chest when they have to

withdrawal symptoms and if I didn't have

them the hair on my head hurt not only

that withdrawal symptoms you're going to

be having growing up you're gonna be

vomiting you're gonna have cold chills

you're gonna have hot flashes you're

gonna not be able to sleep because

you're gonna have restless legs your

legs are gonna be moving all over the

place this is your legs this is what

they're gonna be doing because you can't

stand to be in your own skin and that is

exactly what it feels like the

withdrawal exactly you're also gonna

have probably anxiety attacks maybe even

pain

attacks your face is flushing you might

get scared you know so you start

hyperventilating and things like that

there was no counseling along the way I

was never told that dependence was gonna

be a problem right and then at the end

no one knew how or was able or willing

to appropriately wean me off so why

wasn't anyone doing anything about this

well soon people did as time went on

perdy would go on to face many

class-action lawsuits in regard to their

practices with the drug often the

company settle awarding plaintiffs

millions in 2004 Purdue was sued for

deceptive marketing as the drugs were

meant to last 12 hours

but lasted much less the company settled

the suit for ten million dollars sealing

the case under confidentiality and

admitting no wrongdoing or changing any

practices Purdue always avoided any

cyclist testifying under oath

they always reached a settlement just as

they were going to be called upon in

2007 the company faced a suit from the

federal government in which Purdue was

charged for a criminal felony of

purposefully pushing misconceptions

about oxycontin Purdue acknowledged that

they knew about the misconceptions

doctors had about their drug and

actively exploited it for profit this

settlement cost Purdue 600 million

dollars even though a lot of the Sackler

family were on the board and Richard

Sackler had a direct hand in operations

the CERCLA family name appeared nowhere

in the 89 page guilty plea however the

cyclin name did appear on an agreement

attached to the plea which would mean

that the government wouldn't go after

any of the listed entities related to

the Sackler family the company's

eagerness to settle was in order to

avoid anything going on the public

record especially anything from the

circles themselves the family's only

testimony on the topic came in 2015 from

Richard sealed from public view for four

years and only released in 2009 the

testimony showed that Richard Sackler

knew about the dangers of oxycontin in

2001 after it was reported that 59

people died from oxycontin overdoses his

email to executives read that is not too

bad it could have been far worse

by 2010 perdy had realized that they

need to address the issue facing them so

they created a new formula for their

pill which is harder to snort or inject

after the reformulations a study was

conducted that found 1/3 of users

switched to other drugs and of those a

further 70% began using heroin it

appears that this reformulation simply

increased the rate that people turn to

cheaper and harder opioids this was

shown by the significant increase in

cases post 2010 your money gets tiny

you're just like well what can I get

something close to this but cheaper

companies do play a big role

Purdy's actions went two step further as

the oxycontin pattern was nearing its

end Purdue with an apparent sudden

change of heart

stunningly lobbied that the drug was

prone to abuse and then no other

companies should be allowed to remake it

in 2013 the FDA agreed no generic copies

of oxycontin were to be made but

Purdue's version of oxycontin remained

on the market this simply meant that no

other competitors could make their own

versions of the drug

so what looked like a rare noble act

from Purdue was simply a cunning act to

move to secure a few more years of

competition free selling of their

billion-dollar baby

oxycontin with his trail of destruction

ruining large sections of the American

population Purdue appears to be moving

to other markets markets with fewer

regulations would be a simple way for

the cyclists to keep milking their cash

cow in 2016 and LA Times investigation

into Purdy's child company Monday farmer

suggested that is gearing up to take on

international markets with their drug in

response US lawmakers wrote a letter to

the World Health Organization warning

the intents of the company owned by the

Sackler family in 2018 the SEC has

obtained a patent for a drug which is

used to treat opioid addiction

ironically they might make even more

money from the crisis they helped create

in March 2019 Purdue settled yet another

lawsuit this time the company agreed to

pay 270 million dollars to the state of

Oklahoma for its part in the opioid

epidemic the Sackler family was not

called by name as the defendant however

perhaps an order to not be called to

testify the Sackler family has

voluntarily pledged 75 million dollars

to the National Centre for Addiction

Studies at Oklahoma State University the

company is currently said to be

considering bankruptcy in the midst of

thousands of lawsuits in order to

protect the assets in total a separate

collection of about 1600 lawsuits are

being carried out from various levels of

government

the circular name was kept far away from

their products and oxycontin wasn't

called oxy Sackler on purpose but now

the world is waking up we're here to

call out the Sackler family who've

become synonymous with the opioid crisis

the family who made billions off the

bodies of hundreds of thousands

protestors have began assembling and

organizing against the cyclists in

February 2019 the Guggenheim Museum in

New York a common recipient of suckler

money was taken over by protesters

prescription papers fell from the

balconies symbolically as carelessly as

doctors on the cyclope roll once wrote

them the chant

shame on Sackler occurred throughout the

streets of New York as angry groups

gathered it now seems that the cyclists

favorite domain the art and museum world

has now been overtaken by people who

have had enough in 2019 one by one art

galleries around the world began to

reject their work the National Portrait

Gallery in the UK announced that it

would be rejecting a 1.3 million

donation from the Sackler trust London

State Museum in New York's Guggenheim

Museum both announced that any further

donations from the sackless will not be

accepted as far as outrage against the

sackless goes the deeper story is more

nuanced most of the Sackler descendants

are involved in philanthropic work

organizing various charities and

well-meaning causes some have never

owned any shares and Purdue but Barre

the Sackler name

should the descendants some of whom have

no interaction with Purdue apart from

collecting their checks which some

estimates put as high as 1 billion

dollars per year be held accountable the

publication The New Yorker puts forward

a good argument that the money received

from ill games should go to measures to

counter the impact that they had for

example john d rockefeller founded

Standard Oil which was later broken up

into massive oil companies such as

Chevron ExxonMobil and BP the

descendants of Rockefeller have used

some of their fortune to fund resources

involved in climate change and ordered

the companies harms due to their

enormous moral responsibility should the

cyclists do the same the last of the

three original Sackler brothers who

started the company back in the 1950s

died in 2017 however Richard who ran the

Purdy company and other Sackler members

who have served on the board are still

alive and being sued all of these

settlements seem like pennies on the

dollar for a company which reportedly

earned thirty five billion dollars in

revenue from oxycontin and further

fueled an epidemic which has killed over

200,000 people since 1997 one senator

even described the settlements as an

expensive license for criminal

misconduct sure the cyclers are not

solely responsible for the opioid

epidemic a range of other drugs were

available both pharmaceutical and on the

street and there were other factors too

but their large role in the entire

crisis is undeniable perhaps there's a

silver lining though the US government

has taken the first steps to addressing

the issue on a national level emergency

response tools such as narcan nasal

spray have saved countless lives in

emergency overdose situations drugs such

as buprenorphine and methadone combined

with psychological help are often used

to treat patients addicted to opioids

meanwhile researchers in Canada are

finding a 30 percent of medicinal

cannabis patients use the drug as a

substitute for their previous opioid

addictions 2014 study found the deaths

from opioids were 25 percent lower in

states that had legalized cannabis in

total it's a complicated issue and it's

going to be a long road but

understanding addiction and creating

medical reforms that make it harder for

companies to lie about their drugs will

be key in the future change

credit and a bit of thankfulness must be

given to the countless people who are

trying to help those affected by this

horrible crisis hospital staff charity

workers local police fire departments

social workers in their own way they all

help save lives every day but it is

evident now more than ever the effect

that the Sackler family has had on the

world depending on how long the opioid

crisis continues we still may not know

the full and true extent of the cyclers

efforts ironically after Sackler once

told his children leave the world a

better place than it was when you came

in if you've ever seen a bigger case of

hypocrisy please let me know the

cyclists that were involved in creating

an opioid epidemic cared more about

their profits than they did about their

patients the very people they were meant

to help it may be too late to bring

those responsible to justice

or completely heal from the impact that

their actions had on the world but it's

not too late to stop this kind of thing

from happening again in the future for

the last thirty years the cycle has had

a secret but not anymore

and now you all know it too so that

wraps up our look at the Sackler family

and their role in the opioid crisis if

you do know anyone going through this

I'm sorry

and I hope things get better for them

so just a bit of housekeeping quickly if

this video does well like the

thoroughness video I did before and you

guys kind of like this longer form

content then I think I'll do one of

these long form documentaries maybe once

a month we'll see how we go so again

thanks for watching this has been - go

go you've been watching cold fusion feel

free to share this video to anyone who's

interested in this topic and wondering

how this opioid epidemic actually really

started and I'll catch you again soon

for the next video cheers guys have a

good one

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