The opioid epidemic has become one of the United States biggest issues. According to the CDC, in 2021 there was a staggering “…100,306 drug overdose deaths in the United States…” This is an alarming 28.5% increase from the year prior and the first time ever that deaths surpassed 100,000. With the number of deaths climbing exponentially every year, the only solution is to prosecute people with harsher punishments for illegally distributing the opioids or prescribing way too much of them.

There are several reasons as to why there are so many opioid overdoses in the United States. Doctors overprescribing medications to their patients for money or sex is one of the primary causes. Another major cause of widespread opioid abuse is pharmaceutical companies marketing their drugs as not that addictive. 

Doctors all around the United States have been accused of handing out prescription opioids to patients for personal gain. New York Times author Campbell Robertson, in his essay, “Doctors Accused of Trading Opioid Prescriptions for Sex and Cash,” discusses “the ’single largest prescription opioid law enforcement operation in history.’” In 2019, “…60 people, including 31 doctors, seven pharmacists, and eight nurses…” were all charged with “…schemes to illegally distribute millions of pain pills.” They prescribed opioids for fake operations, wrote blank signed prescription pads, and even brought opioids to their own homes and invited prostitutes to come over.

Investigations revealed that more than 32 million pills were distributed which is “the equivalent of a dose of opioids for every man, woman, and child across the states of Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, and West Virginia,” according to Campbell. These 5 states are significant because they were where almost all the accused doctors were from, and all of them, besides Alabama, also happen to be in the top 5 states with the highest rates of drug overdose deaths that year according to the CDC drug mortality rates. 

These illegally given prescriptions are the reason those states have extremely high overdose death rates, meaning the doctors are directly responsible. While some of them did receive up to 10 years of jail time, the sentences should be much larger considering their crimes. A life sentence would be much more appropriate because not only did they commit drug trafficking, but they also exploited drug-addicted prostitutes by having sex with them when they were not in the right state of mind and murdered people by providing so many highly addictive opioids.

This is not the first time a doctor would be charged with murder because Dr. Thomas Keller was charged with 9 counts of second-degree murder for over-prescribing medications. However, Chantelle Lee, in his essay, “Jury acquits Santa Rosa pain doctor of two murder charges but hung on remaining murder charges” explains that “…the jury returned a not guilty verdict for four of the nine counts against Keller,” and were undecided on the rest of the 5 charges.  

The jury made the wrong decision because Keller should have been found guilty for being directly responsible for all 9 patients’ deaths. He prescribed the maximum dosage of highly addictive opioids to his patients along with Soma, a muscle relaxant, which is extremely dangerous if taken with opioids. Rob Bonta, in his report, “Attorney General Becerra Announces Arrest and Charges Against Santa Rosa Doctor for Overprescribing Opioids, Second-Degree Murder” explains that “Keller is alleged to have continued his dangerous treatment despite Red Flag warnings from pharmacies and insurance companies, his own observations of his patients, and knowledge of his patients’ deaths from drug overdose.” The fact that he knew that his patients were dying, yet he continued prescribing the opioids is what makes this murder, and not just manslaughter. 

Another major cause for the immense number of opioid overdoses in the Unites States is the pharmaceutical companies that marketed their drugs as not that addicting. 

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the opioid epidemic started “In the late 1990s, [when] pharmaceutical companies reassured the medical community that patients would not become addicted to pain relievers and healthcare providers began to prescribe them at greater rates.” Because of the increased prescriptions being given out, people became highly addicted to the opioids causing widespread opioid abuse. 

One of the main pharmaceutical companies that did this was Purdue Pharma, manufacturer of OxyContin. They aggressively marketed Oxycontin as a non-addictive and necessary drug for pain management. After the opioid epidemic began, Purdue Pharma insisted that they did not know that their drugs were addictive.

However, Barry Meier, in his article, “Origins of an Epidemic: Purdue Pharma Knew Its Opioids Were Widely Abused” claims that “…a copy of a confidential Justice Department report shows that…Purdue Pharma knew about the ‘significant’ abuse of OxyContin in the first years after the drug’s introduction in 1996 and concealed that information.” 

They received reports early on that the drugs were being stolen from pharmacies to be crushed and snorted on the streets, yet they continued to market their drugs as not addictive. Organizations like the “American Pain Society” and “Joint Commission” were also misled by Purdue Pharma and stressed the safety of Oxycontin as well. Joint Commission even “[published] a guide sponsored by Purdue Pharma…[that] stated ‘Some clinicians have inaccurate and exaggerated concerns out addiction, tolerance and risk of death.’” These vouches for safety directly caused Oxycontin to be underestimated and widely abused. 

Fortunately, Purdue Pharma was held responsible for turning a blind eye. Meier continued “In 2007, Purdue Pharma pleaded guilty to a felony charge of ’misbranding’ OxyContin, while marketing the drug by misrepresenting, among other things, its risk of addiction and potential to be abused.” The company had to pay $634.5 million in fines and the top officials of the company had to perform community service. 

However, this was not enough justice considering the 500,000 people that died from opioid abuse in the last 2 decades and many people publicly protested and criticized this lackluster punishment; in 2021, the federal government acted and forced Purdue Pharma into bankruptcy. The owners, the Sackler family, were forced to pay up to $10 billion dollars to settle the damages OxyContin caused and dissolve their company. The only issue was that this deal enabled the Sackler family to avoid liability and keep their personal wealth.

After more protests, in March 2022, “A federal judge…overturned Purdue Pharma’s settlement…[that] contained a provision that would protect members of the Sackler family from civil lawsuits without declaring themselves personally bankrupt.” claims Amah-Rose Abrams in, “A Federal Judge Has Overturned Purdue Pharma’s Highly Contested Oxycontin Settlement.” 

This level of prosecution has been long awaited and a critical step in holding the guilty parties responsible. Purdue Pharma being prosecuted was a ground-breaking case which warns companies to prioritize safety over greed.