Consultant McKinsey pays US$573mn in opioid scandal

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  • 2021-02-05 HKT 01:38″ title=”McKinsey was forced into the payout over its role in advising on strategy for sales of the opioid OxyContin. File photo: Reuters”>


    McKinsey was forced into the payout over its role in advising on strategy for sales of the opioid OxyContin. File photo: Reuters
    McKinsey was forced into the payout over its role in advising on strategy for sales of the opioid OxyContin. File photo: Reuters

Global consulting firm McKinsey will pay US$573 million to US states to settle claims that it contributed to the deadly opioid crisis through its advice to pharmaceutical giants, including OxyContin manufacturer Purdue Pharma.

The settlement is rare in the history of the massive firm that advertises its ability to solve problems worldwide, but has found itself accused of having a hand in creating a massive public health crisis in the United States.

Under the terms of the settlement announced on Thursday, McKinsey will not admit fault, and the agreement protects the company from future civil claims.

However, McKinsey will have to discontinue consulting work on some narcotics, implement a new ethics code, release documents related to their work with Purdue while ensuring none is destroyed, said New York Attorney General Letitia James, who announced the settlement.

“Under the terms of today’s agreement, the company will finally end its illegal conduct, deliver more than half a billion dollars into communities across the nation and will never be able to help perpetrate this type of fraud and deception again,” James said.

New York was among the group of 47 states, five territories and the District of Columbia that sued the firm over its work with Purdue Pharma, which last year pleaded guilty to criminal charges over the production and sale of prescription opioid OxyContin.

McKinsey advised the firm on how to “turbocharge the sales engine” of the drug by up to US$400 million per-year, according to a Massachusetts lawsuit, by emphasising that the opioid could reduce stress and make users more optimistic.

The New York Times reported that McKinsey consultants also worked with Perdue Pharma to counter “the emotional messages from mothers with teenagers that overdosed” on OxyContin.

Almost half a million Americans died in overdoses from both prescription and illegal opioids between 1999 and 2018, according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

“McKinsey’s cynical and calculated marketing tactics helped fuel the opioid crisis by helping Purdue Pharma target those doctors they knew would overprescribe opioids,” James said. (AFP)