Purdue Pharma Files for Bankruptcy

Purdue Pharma, the company owned by the Sackler family at the center of the prescription opioid crisis, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, according to The New York Times. The company is the subject of more than 2,600 lawsuits at both the state and federal levels.

“This unique framework for a comprehensive resolution will dedicate all of the assets and resources of Purdue for the benefit of the American public,” Purdue’s board chairman Steve Miller said in a statement to the Times. “This settlement framework avoids wasting hundreds of millions of dollars and years on protracted litigation, and instead will provide billions of dollars and critical resources to communities across the country trying to cope with the opioid crisis.”

Chapter 11 restructuring would mean at least a temporary halt to the thousands of lawsuits against the company by all but two U.S. states as the company’s finances are sorted.

The bankruptcy announcement comes after the New York attorney general announced on Friday that $1 billion from Purdue’s owners were allegedly transferred to hide profits. In August, New York Attorney General Letitia James subpoenaed more than 30 financial institutions for records related to billions of dollars tied to the Sackler family. And that announcement happened only after one financial institution complied with the subpoena.

“While the Sacklers continue to lowball victims and skirt a responsible settlement, we refuse to allow the family to misuse the courts in an effort to shield their financial misconduct. The limited number of documents provided to us so far underscore the necessity for compliance with every subpoena,” James said a statement to the Associated Press.