Author and addiction advocate, Ryan Hampton, joins us to talk about his experience trying to hold Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family accountable for the horrific opioid plague they helped set in motion as outlined in his book, “Unsettled, How the Purdue Pharma Bankruptcy Failed the Victims of the American Overdose Crisis.” Plus, Ralph answers a listener question about Medicare (Dis)Advantage.
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Ryan Hampton is a national addiction recovery advocate, community organizer, and author. Mr. Hampton was co-chair of the official creditor’s committee that acted as a watchdog during Purdue Pharma’s bankruptcy proceedings. His latest book is Unsettled: How the Purdue Pharma Bankruptcy Failed the Victims of the American Overdose Crisis.
We think of the Sackler family as the First Family of Big Pharma. And rightly so, for many reasons. They released OxyContin in the 90s utilizing tactics that were criminal, and false advertising, and false marketing. In fact, they pretty much wrote their own new drug approval (or NDA) with the FDA in the late 90s… Let me repeat that: Purdue Pharma wrote their own drug approval that went on to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
Ryan Hampton, author of Unsettled: How the Purdue Pharma Bankruptcy Failed the Victims of the American Overdose Crisis
At the end of this, [the Sackler family] will be richer than they are today and have paid the settlement back. That is insanity. This bankruptcy–it wasn’t a bankruptcy, it was a heist. It was a scam. It was a money grab.
Ryan Hampton, author of Unsettled: How the Purdue Pharma Bankruptcy Failed the Victims of the American Overdose Crisis
This is beyond the imagination of writers of fiction about corporate fugitives from justice… And listeners should know that individuals can’t get away with this, with bankruptcy. There now is a double standard: the privileges, immunities, escapes from justice under corporate bankruptcy laws are far, far more enabling then any debtor who tries to start a clean slate and declares bankruptcy for a few thousand dollars of debt. This is a double standard that someday should be challenged under the equal protection laws of the US Constitution.
Ralph Nader
[The Sacklers] are now moving to eliminate the last remaining social sanction for their crimes, which is stigma. And it shows you the power that these corporations have: they escaped from regulation. They escaped essentially from criminal prosecution. None of these people are going to jail. They escaped from the state attorney generals. And now they want to escape from stigma, and just come back and start their mode of operating and getting more profits.
Ralph Nader
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9 Comments
I can name more than 5 people who died chasing this horrible dragon. 5 close friends and realitives. Im sure theres more that i just dont know about. Why do the bad guys keep winning. Alot of other people get exploited and murdered.
Hello Ralph, I am a college graduate and am interested in finding employment with public interest groups or organizations in San Diego. Do you have any groups or organizations you recommend? Thank you for all that you have done and continue to do.
Long time listener and supporter,
-Adrian
Ralph, Carafentinyl is more dangeous than Fentanyl. It is an elephant tranquilizer. It killed my dear friends daughter. Someone put it in ths beautiful young girl’s soda. She was not an addict. A victim of someone’s murdering behavior(s). How many more?
Davis Polk has been the conductor of the Sackler’s puppeteer show. Davis Polk & Arik Preis of the U.C.C. are in bed together. I know, they contact me together on conference calls. They both stand up for each other. It’s insanity. The Debtor’s for Purdue and Creditor for the claimants align themselves with each other again.
CVS is on the U.C.C. for Purdue and were just found guilty for their part in The Nation’s Public Health & Safety Emergency. Yes, you can go through kicking the opiods without going through these expensive treatment centers. The Insurance Companies, Medicare and Medicaid are complicit too. Unregulated non-eviidenced based treatment.
Now, the physicians are prescribing more tranquilizers and anti-depressants in history and creating another wave of addiction unto the grieving family members, friends and colleagues. The Greedy GOVERNEMENT, CORPORATIONS and COMPANIES putting the family members in fear is a CRIME!
Thank you Ryan Hampton! The fight IS NOT OVER!!!
WE THE PEOPLE MATTER!!!
Well, there you have it. The speakers stated the federal government makes more than $5 billion a year in taxes on opioids. Cui bono? As in who benefits and why.
We don’t have to demand that candidates answer a question on what they intend to do about corporate crime. They have already answered that question when they took big money to run their campaigns.
As you said these politicians have to be held accountable and replaced.
We hold politicians accountable and replace them with our votes.
We do have to demand that candidates answer questions on issues such as corporate crime by running small donor only campaigns and enforce that demand with our votes.
Until we sever the connection between the big money interests and the politicians we will be expending our resources and efforts in a constant game of whack a mole from one disappointment after another.
Why do you not join the effort to promote One Demand that will enable citizens utilize the basic principles of democracy to work together to demand that candidates run small donor only campaigns and enforce that demand with our votes?
Please explain how these basic principles of democracy will not work or join the effort.
Think of it as a demand for an answer on what you intend to do about corporate crime.
Oh. So forever chemicals, all those endrocrine disrupters, all of that, and the chemical and petroleum and plastics companies get green light treatment by these Faustians, both sides of the manure political isle.
Report and investigation after investigation and report. And where do these exposes get us?
It’s like a dramatic theater exercise in self flaggelation.
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Yes, we get those books, those Dark Waters drama flicks, The Mauritarian book and flick with Jody Foster, all of that, and, have things improved since China Syndrome, Silkwood, Silent Spring, The Jungle . . . . et al?
We need revolutionary and dissident and defiant folk on Ralph’s show, not just recorders of the corruption and crimes of capitalism.
> HOW YOUR 401(K) IS HELPING DESTROY THE
World !!!!!!
Our system cannot change because every employed citizen in the top 50% say has a 401K they are deathly afraid of losing … it is literally destroying the world … and even with all the many great ideas and criticisms, there is no possibility of a solution.
Ryan,
Investor wealth, whether big ones or little ones is the foundation for criminal corporate crimes. They can, because so many people sigh and stay silent hoping to grow their pot of gold.
Divesting has to start happening with Health- in Top Four sectors.
(Click on 10y below graph to see how this sector has grown wealth even in a Osndemic)
https://www.fidelity.com/sector-investing/health-care/overview
Well said, Paul.
I’d add that the most pernicious addiction we all face is the one afflicting our Congressional, Judicial, and Executive branches of government: the hard drug of campaign finance loot. It makes the entire political process a charade, a meaningless game played by the abused thus abusing our democracy and citizenry and workers. These pirates raiding our democracy for election booty makes the tragedy that happened to–the surprisingly lucid–Ryan Hampton and tens of millions of others not only possible but likely.
Our hats off and kudos to Ryan Hampton for making his spirit overcome the narcotic assault on his body and mind.
The mass political addiction to campaign finance corruption sets loose serial killers like Boeing Inc, Tesla Corp, and too many other corporate maniacs as mass murdering, repeat offenders.
I vote for the corporate death penalty to cease Purdue Pharma et all of the Sackler’s dummy companies. I vote for capital punishment to Boeing, Tesla, and to all who would take our money, our freedom, and our lives for their obscene bottom line.