This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

The five biggest companies making prescription opioids have been accused by a US Senate committee of spending $10m on patient advocacy and medical groups to encourage use of the addictive drugs, which are at the root of a public health crisis in America.

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“I think these groups were cheerleaders … cheerleaders too often for opioids,” said Senator Claire McCaskill, the top Democrat on the Senate homeland security and government affairs committee, which is investigating pharmaceutical company practices.

The committee reported on Monday that Purdue Pharma, manufacturer of leading narcotic painkiller OxyContin, made the largest donations to outside groups that present themselves as advocates for people suffering from chronic pain.

“In some instances they are merely fronting for these manufacturers, especially if you look at the lobbying they’ve done against restricting opioids,” said McCaskill, adding: “These financial relationships were insidious, lacked transparency, and are one of many factors that have resulted in arguably the most deadly drug epidemic in American history.”

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The committee, which has been investigating Big Pharma practices from 2012 to 2017, said Purdue Pharma gave the most money, $4.15m to 12 groups. Purdue said in a statement that it supported organisations interested in helping patients receive appropriate care.

The report notes that organizations such as the American Academy of Pain Medicine play down the risks of addiction and abuse. The report names Purdue Pharma, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Mylan, Depomed and Insys Therapeutics.



McCaskill launched the investigation last spring by saying: “We want to get to the bottom of why, all of a sudden, opioids have been handed out like candy in this country.”