The Sackler family greed reaches the Supreme Court

The MoJo Daily newsletter, Monday through Friday. [View in browser]( [Mother Jones Daily Newsletter](     December 4, 2023 When I was looking for something to watch over Thanksgiving, I landed on [Painkiller](, a Netflix limited series about how the Sackler family and Purdue Pharma drove the opioid crisis through the aggressive and false marketing of OxyContin. The series highlights the greed that drove the Sacklers to [push doctors to overprescribe the drug](, the arrogance that led them and their salespeople to [lie about its addictive capacity](, and the tragedy of the lives ruined by the crisis. Prescription opioid overdoses [led to the deaths]( of [more than](300,000 Americans between 1999 to 2022. Despite the havoc they wreaked, the Sacklers have consistently evaded accountability and deflected blame for the opioid crisis. That pattern continues to this day, with their lawyers arguing before the Supreme Court to shield members of the Sackler family from civil lawsuits in exchange for billions to address the harm inflicted by the crisis. As my colleague Samantha Michaels [reported]( yesterday, a branch of the Justice Department asked the Supreme Court to weigh in on the case, arguing that it was Purdue Pharma—not the Sacklers—that [filed for bankruptcy]( in 2019, and that the settlement therefore illegally allows the Sacklers to "shield billions of dollars of their fortune while extinguishing, without payment, claims alleging trillions of dollars in damages," according to Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, who's representing the DOJ. Many families of victims lost to the epidemic want the settlement funds distributed ASAP—but they also want the Sacklers to be held accountable. But whether that happens remains to be seen. The New York Times [reported]( today that the justices appeared split on how to rule on the settlement case. While we wait for their ruling, I recommend checking out Painkiller on Netflix to learn more about how unchecked corporate greed ravaged so many American lives. —Julianne McShane Advertisement [Democracy Journal]( [Top Story] [Top Story]( [Will the Supreme Court Make the Sacklers Pay for the Opioid Crisis?]( The justices will hear oral arguments on Monday. BY SAMANTHA MICHAELS SPONSORED CONTENT BY DEMOCRACY JOURNAL   Democracy Journal — Subscribe to Get the Latest Issue Democracy: A Journal of Ideas is free and available to all. In our latest issue, a group of esteemed experts discuss ways to make our democracy more representative and responsive. [Sign up]( to receive our Fall issue on proportional representation and more. [Join our network of progressive thinkers today!]( [Trending] [Trump can be prosecuted for trying to overturn election, judge rules]( BY ARI BERMAN   [The Supreme Court case that could upend a century of tax law]( BY MICHAEL MECHANIC   [UN: Disabled people are being erased in climate policies]( BY JULIA MÉTRAUX   [Watch SNL roast George Santos as he's booted from Congress]( BY SAMANTHA MICHAELS Advertisement [Democracy Journal]( [Special Feature] [Special Feature]( [Have endometriosis? Be wary of that popular Facebook group]( Nancy's Nook offers answers for desperate patients, but former members have said the advice isn't always accurate. BY KIERA BUTLER [Fiercely Independent] Support from readers allows Mother Jones to do journalism that doesn't just follow the pack. [Donate]( Did you enjoy this newsletter? Help us out by [forwarding]( it to a friend or sharing it on [Facebook]( and [Twitter](. [Mother Jones]( [Donate]( [Donate Monthly]( [Subscribe]( This message was sent to {EMAIL}. To change the messages you receive from us, you can [edit your email preferences]( or [unsubscribe from all mailings.]( For advertising opportunities see our online [media kit.]( Were you forwarded this email? [Sign up for Mother Jones' newsletters today.]( [www.MotherJones.com]( PO Box 8539, Big Sandy, TX 75755