An Empire Of Deceit And The Origin Of America Opioid Epidemic

Hidden in the shadows of corporate greed and the pursuit of profit lies an empire of deceit that has fueled the devastating opioid epidemic in America. Behind closed doors, pharmaceutical companies knowingly perpetuated the overprescription and misuse of powerful painkillers, leaving communities ravaged and families torn apart by addiction. This is the shocking tale of how this empire of deceit unraveled, exposing the origins of America's opioid epidemic.

The roots of the epidemic can be traced back to the late 1990s when pharmaceutical giants like Purdue Pharma, Johnson & Johnson, and Teva Pharmaceuticals saw an opportunity to tap into a growing market for pain management solutions. The marketing campaign for these opioid medications was cunningly crafted to downplay the risks of addiction and emphasize their effectiveness in alleviating pain.

Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin, played a particularly sinister role in this web of deception. The company employed aggressive marketing tactics that targeted doctors, promising that OxyContin was safe, non-addictive, and could be used to treat a wide range of pain-related conditions. This blatant misinformation led to a staggering increase in prescriptions, fuelling the start of the opioid crisis.

Pain Killer: An Empire of Deceit and the Origin of America's Opioid Epidemic

by Barry Meier (2nd Edition, Kindle Edition)

4.6 out of 5

Language	:	English
File size	:	837 KB
Text-to-Speech	:	Enabled
Screen Reader	:	Supported
Enhanced typesetting	:	Enabled
Print length	:	211 pages

FREE

With billions of dollars pouring into these pharmaceutical companies, they formed an alliance with the healthcare system to further their insidious agenda. Pain management became a priority, and doctors were incentivized to prescribe more opioids, encouraged by financial kickbacks and rewards from pharmaceutical representatives.

As the opioid crisis escalated, the true extent of the damage caused began to surface. Opioid-related deaths soared, families were torn apart, and communities were left in ruins. Law enforcement agencies struggled to keep up as illegal opioids flooded the streets, perpetuating the cycle of addiction.

Amid mounting lawsuits and public outcry, the empire of deceit began to crumble. Whistleblowers from within the industry stepped forward, exposing internal documents that showed pharmaceutical companies were fully aware of the addictive nature of these drugs and yet intentionally misled the public and medical community.

Legal proceedings against these pharmaceutical giants unfolded, revealing shocking revelations of deceit, corruption, and disregard for human life. In 2007, Purdue Pharma pleaded guilty to federal charges of misbranding OxyContin, admitting that they had misled the medical community about the drug's addictive properties. They were fined over $600 million, but this amount paled in comparison to the billions of dollars in profit they had made from the sale of OxyContin.

As the truth behind the origins of the opioid epidemic became public knowledge, efforts to combat the crisis gained momentum. Stricter regulations were implemented to curb overprescription and control the distribution of these highly addictive drugs. Education campaigns were launched to raise awareness about the dangers of opioids, shedding light on the empire of deceit that had controlled the narrative for far too long.

However, the damage caused by the empire of deceit cannot be undone easily. Countless lives have been lost, families torn apart, and communities left scarred. The opioid epidemic continues to ravage America, with the path to recovery being long and arduous.

It is essential for society to remember the lessons learned from this tragic chapter in American history. The manipulation of trust and the pursuit of profit at the expense of human lives must never be allowed to happen again. By exposing the empire of deceit and demanding accountability from those who perpetuated it, we can work towards preventing such catastrophic epidemics in the future.

In the face of this ongoing crisis, it is imperative that we support those affected by addiction, work towards compassionate and effective treatment methods, and strive for a society that prioritizes the well-being of its citizens over corporate interests.

Pain Killer: An Empire of Deceit and the Origin of America's Opioid Epidemic

by Barry Meier (2nd Edition, Kindle Edition)

4.6 out of 5

Language	:	English
File size	:	837 KB
Text-to-Speech	:	Enabled
Screen Reader	:	Supported
Enhanced typesetting	:	Enabled
Print length	:	211 pages

FREE

A Pulitzer Prize–winning New York Times reporter exposes the roots of the opioid epidemic at the hands of Purdue Pharma and Raymond and Mortimer Sackler in Pain Killer, a “timely, compelling, important” (The Seattle Times) story of corporate greed and government negligence.
 
“Groundbreaking . . . Pain Killer is the shocking account of the origins of today’s opioid epidemic, the creators of this plague, and the way to help stop it.”—Sam Quinones, author of Dreamland: The True Tale of America’s Opiate Epidemic 
Between 1999 and 2017, an estimated 250,000 Americans died from overdoses involving prescription painkillers, a plague ignited by Purdue Pharma’s aggressive marketing of OxyContin. Families, working class and wealthy, have been torn apart, businesses destroyed, and public officials pushed to the brink. Meanwhile, the drugmaker’s owners, Raymond and Mortimer Sackler, whose names adorn museums worldwide, made enormous fortunes from the commercial success of OxyContin.
 
In Pain Killer, Barry Meier tells the story of how Purdue turned OxyContin into a billion-dollar blockbuster. Powerful narcotic painkillers, or opioids, were once used as drugs of last resort for pain sufferers. But Purdue launched an unprecedented marketing campaign claiming that the drug’s long-acting formulation made it safer to use than traditional painkillers for many types of pain. That illusion was quickly shattered as drug abusers learned that crushing an Oxy could release its narcotic payload all at once. Even in its prescribed form, Oxy proved fiercely addictive. As OxyContin’s use and abuse grew, Purdue concealed what it knew from regulators, doctors, and patients.
 
Here are the people who profited from the crisis and those who paid the price, those who plotted in boardrooms and those who tried to sound alarm bells. A country doctor in rural Virginia, Art Van Zee, took on Purdue and warned officials about OxyContin abuse. An ebullient high school cheerleader, Lindsey Myers, was reduced to stealing from her parents to feed her escalating Oxy habit. A hard-charging DEA official, Laura Nagel, tried to hold Purdue executives to account.
 
In this updated edition of Pain Killer, Barry Meier breaks new ground in his decades-long investigation into the opioid epidemic. He takes readers inside Purdue to show how long the company withheld information about the abuse of OxyContin and gives a shocking account of the Justice Department’s failure to alter the trajectory of the opioid epidemic and protect thousands of lives. Equal parts crime thriller, medical detective story, and business exposé, Pain Killer is a hard-hitting look at how a supposed wonder drug became the gateway drug to a national tragedy.