Oxytocin Maker Pleads Guilty to 8 Billion Settlement
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Oxytocin maker, Purdue Pharma, will plead guilty to three federal charges including conspiracy to defraud the United States and violating kickback laws.

The Justice Department said that the charges are part of a settlement of more than $8 billion, as reported by The Daily Beast.

In addition, the resolution will be detailed in a bankruptcy court filing.

Experts say that the Oxycontin maker helped contribute to the country's opioid crisis.

The settlement is the highest profile action that the federal government has taken in seeing to hold a drug manufacturer accountable for the crisis.

The said opioid crisis caused at least 470,000 in the last two decades.

A criminal investigation is being done. This does not excuse the company's owners or executives from criminal accountability.

"If the only practical consequence of your Department's investigation is that a handful of billionaires are made slightly less rich, we fear that the American people will lose faith in the ability of the Department to provide accountability and equal justice under the law," Democratic members of Congress wrote to U.S. Attorney General William Barr, as reported.

Case Resolution

Purdue will admit that it hindered the Drug Enforcement Administration by falsely representing that it had remained an effective program to avoid drug diversion.

The officials said that company will also admit to reporting misleading information to the agency to boost the company's manufacturing quotas.

An official from the Justice Department said that Purdue had been showing to the DEA that it had strong control to avoid opioid diversion.

However, the company had been "disregarding red flags their own systems were sending up."

Purdue will also have to admit that they have violated the anti-kickback law.

This by paying doctors, through a speaking program.

By doing so, they would write more prescriptions for the company's opioids.

The company were also reported to use an electronic health records software that influence the prescription of Oxycontin.

A total of $225 million will be directly paid to the federal government, which is a huge portion of $2 billion criminal forfeiture.

Purdue is will also pay $3.54 billion as criminal fine. However, this will not be taken as this will be collected through a bankruptcy.

Future of Purdue

Purdue will become a public benefit company, which would be governed by a trust that has to balance the trust's interest against those of the American public and public health.

Officials said that the Sacklers will not be part of the new company and part of the money from the settlement would go aid in medically assisted treatment and other drug programs.

Purdue is also required to cooperate with other federal investigation and potential other persecutions.

Before the deal was announced the members of Congress said it does not hold the company properly accountable, while raising concerns about some of the details.

The Democratic members of Congress also wrote in a statement that millions of American families were affected by the opioid crisis and looking for justice.

The members of Congress said that it would be justice for loved ones lost and jobs lost due to substance use disorder.

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