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Opioid Victims Have a Settlement. Will the Supreme Court Undo It?

The opioid epidemic has been one of the biggest public health disasters in generations. The drug company at the heart of the crisis, Purdue Pharma, maker of the prescription painkiller OxyContin, agreed to a multibillion-dollar deal to settle thousands of claims against it — but that agreement would also grant the family behind the company, the Sacklers, immunity from additional civil lawsuits. Justices are now set to rule whether that settlement was legal. Abbie VanSickle, who covers the Supreme Court for The Times, explains what a decision either way could mean for the victims and for the people responsible.
Duration
26m
Broadcast on
06 Dec 2023
Audio Format
other

The opioid epidemic has been one of the biggest public health disasters in generations. The drug company at the heart of the crisis, Purdue Pharma, maker of the prescription painkiller OxyContin, agreed to a multibillion-dollar deal to settle thousands of claims against it — but that agreement would also grant the family behind the company, the Sacklers, immunity from additional civil lawsuits.

Justices are now set to rule whether that settlement was legal. Abbie VanSickle, who covers the Supreme Court for The Times, explains what a decision either way could mean for the victims and for the people responsible.

Guest: Abbie VanSickle, a Supreme Court correspondent for The New York Times.

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This podcast is supported by TikTok. Sometimes the most interesting discoveries are the ones you weren't looking for. That happens every day on TikTok. A science experiment can spark a whole new interest. A recipe you stumble upon can become a meal you make for the people you love. And a restaurant you've never heard of might become your new favorite spot. That's the thing about TikTok. Follow your curiosity and see where it leads. Your next discovery is waiting on TikTok. From the New York Times, I'm Sabrina Tavernese, and this is The Daily. A multi-billion dollar settlement in the opioid crisis reached the Supreme Court this week. What a decision could mean for both the victims and the people responsible. Today, my colleague Abby Van Sickle explains. ♪♪♪ It's Wednesday, December 6th. ♪♪♪ So, Abby, the opioid epidemic has been one of the biggest public health disasters in generations. And for years now, there have been claims piling up against the company at the heart of it, and that's Purdue Pharma. And also against the family who owns that company, the Sacklers. And this week, a case that really kind of represents all of this ended up at the Supreme Court. Tell me about that case. So, the case before the justices this week has to do with how to resolve thousands of claims and suits filed against Purdue Pharma and members of the wealthy Sackler family that controlled it. How courts can resolve those? It is an attempt to try to find accountability and to wrestle with how to go about compensating not only victims and their families, but also states and municipalities across the country that have had to deal with this epidemic that has killed hundreds of thousands of people. OK, so that's a pretty tall order. What is the answer to that? How do you begin to do that? Unpack that for me, Abby. Well, I don't know that I have an answer, but the way that the court system has tried to wrestle with this is not one at a time lawsuits and courts throughout the country, but actually an attempt to bring most of the parties involved into bankruptcy court. Bankruptcy court?

Transcription truncated.

The opioid epidemic has been one of the biggest public health disasters in generations. The drug company at the heart of the crisis, Purdue Pharma, maker of the prescription painkiller OxyContin, agreed to a multibillion-dollar deal to settle thousands of claims against it — but that agreement would also grant the family behind the company, the Sacklers, immunity from additional civil lawsuits. Justices are now set to rule whether that settlement was legal. Abbie VanSickle, who covers the Supreme Court for The Times, explains what a decision either way could mean for the victims and for the people responsible.