OxyContin and Foreign Sales: New York Times

The United States strives to bring an end to the opioids crisis, preventing addition and punishing pharmaceutical companies, distributors and physicians that doled out pills in alarming numbers. Purdue Pharma is in negotiations with litigators, but the owners “want to keep selling OxyContin and other drugs abroad for as many as seven more years, through another company they own, Mundipharma, based in Cambridge, England,” reports the New York Times. “The settlement is intended to help compensate state and local governments for medical treatment, law enforcement and emergency costs stemming from addiction and overdoses that have led to hundreds of thousands of deaths in the past two decades.” Some state attorneys general oppose that deal, pointing out the obvious: Drugmakers deemed as irresponsible for a domestic market should not continue business as usual in the global marketplace. The United States represents about 40 percent of the world’s pharmaceutical sales. While the US is the world’s largest economy, the rest of the world represents about 75 percent of the global economy, and emerging economies offer greater potential for growth. The litigators originally sought $6 billion and Purdue Pharma owners offered $4.5 billion, with delayed sale of Mundipharma intended to help finance the payout. Talks broke down and the matter could be decided in bankruptcy court. – YaleGlobal