Page 8 THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2021 AG’s Offi ce secures $573M settlement with McKinsey for ‘turbocharging’ opioid sales A ttorney General Maura Healey, with a coalition of attorneys general representing 47 states, the District of Columbia and fi ve U.S. territories, recently announced a $573 million settlement with one of the world’s largest consulting firms, McKinsey & Company, resolving investigations into the company’s role working for opioid companies, helping those companies promote their drugs, and profi ting from the opioid epidemic. Under the terms of the consent judgment, filed today along with a complaint in Suff olk Superior Court, McKinsey will pay a total of $573 million – with $13 million going to Massachusetts – which will be used to fund prevention, treatment, and recovery eff orts. This is the fi rst multistate opioid settlement to result in substantial payment to the states to address the epidemic. The judgment remains subject to court approval. “Today’s agreement sets a new standard for accountability in one of the most devastating crises of our time,” AG Healey said. “As a result, our communities will receive substantial resources for treatment, prevention, and recovery services, and families who have seen their loved ones hurt and killed by the opioid epidemic will have the truth exposed about McKinsey’s illegal and dangerous partnership with Purdue Pharma.” McKinsey is required to turn over tens of thousands of internal documents detailing its work for Purdue Pharma and other opioid companies for public disclosure online. According to the complaint, McKinsey designed Purdue’s marketing schemes, including a plan to “turbocharge” OxyContin sales at the height of the opioid epidemic. The filings, with evidence about McKinsey’s misconduct first uncovered by AG Healey’s Offi ce, describe how McKinsey contributed to the opioid crisis by selling marketing schemes and consulting services to opioid manufacturers, including OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma, for over a decade. The complaint, fi led with the settlement, details how McKinsey advised Purdue to maximize its OxyContin profi ts, including by: • Focusing on higher, more lucrative dosages and increased sales rep visits to high-volume opioid prescribers; • Targeting physicians with specific messaging to convince them to prescribe more OxyContin to more patients; • Encouraging opioid manufacturers to band together to “defend against strict treatment by the FDA” on risk mitigation eff orts that could have reduced high doses and saved lives; and • Delivering OxyContin directly to patients through mail-order pharmacies to circumvent retail pharmacy restrictions on high dose, suspicious prescriptions. When states began to sue Purdue’s directors for their implementation of McKinsey’s marketing schemes, McKinsey partners began emailing about deleting documents and emails related to their work for Purdue. Under the terms of today’s settlement, McKinsey will pay $573 million, with a total of $558 million distributed to states to abate the opioid crisis, and $15 million to fund investigation expenses and support the document repository. In Massachusetts, today’s settlement will fund the state’s newly created Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund to help expand access to opioid use disorder prevention, intervention, treatment, and recovery options. Along with the payment and the disclosure of documents, the agreement also imposes court-ordered ethics rules that McKinsey must implement, including strict company-wide standards for document retention, and confl ict disclosures on state contracts. In addition, McKinsey agreed to stop advising companies on potentially dangerous Schedule II and III narcotics. The fi lings are the latest action Healey has taken to combat the opioid epidemic and hold accountable those who are responsible for creating and fueling the crisis. Since taking offi ce, Healey has prioritized combating the opioid epidemic through a multi-disciplinary approach that includes enforcement, policy, prevention, and education eff orts. The states’ investigation, fi rst launched by AG Healey’s Offi ce, was led by an executive committee made up of the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, and Vermont. The executive committee is joined by the attorneys general of Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Arizona, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, the District of Columbia, and the territories of American Samoa, Guam the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. MVES off ers safety tips when walking in snowy and icy conditions E ach winter, slip and fall accidents cause serious injuries. Even when surfaces do not look especially icy or slippery, it is very possible that a thin sheet of transparent ice or black ice is covering your pathway putting you at risk. When you approach a footpath or roadway that appears to be covered with ice or snow, always use extreme caution. Many slips and falls happen in places people regard as safe and secure, typically outside their front door, on the doorstep, on the path or while getting out of the car. With the winter weather upon us, Mystic Valley Elder Services’ Safety Committee advises these 10 tips to make sure you are staying safe when walking around in snowy and icy conditions. • Walk slowly and carefully. Wear boots or other slip-resistant footwear. • Use special care when getting in and out of vehicles. Use the vehicle for support if you need to do so. • Watch for slippery floors when you enter any building or home. • Avoid walking with your hands in your pockets; this can reduce your ability to catch yourself if you lose your balance. • Watch out for black ice. • Tap your foot on potentially slick areas to see if the areas are slippery. • Walk as flat-footed as possible in very icy areas. • Avoid uneven surfaces if possible. Avoid steps or curbs with ice on them. • Report any untreated surfaces to your town, property owner, or work’s maintenance department to help keep you safe. • Remember: Ice and snow mean, “take it slow!” For Advertising with Results, call The Advocate Newspapers at 617-387-2200 or Info@advocatenews.net
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