Obviously, for many users, OxyContin serves merely as a substitute for heroin, but many people with legitimate pain problems were duped into taking the drug. For instance, that was seemingly the case with Rush Limbaugh who started taking the drug after back surgery. After all, most patients trust their doctor’s word as the gospel and the maker of OxyContin, Purdue Pharma, convinced doctors that it had “reduced addiction risk.” That was a completely false marketing claim as OxyContin is just as addictive as heroin and provides virtually the same effects. However, no one from their company went to prison while Purdue Pharma was only fined $635 million in 2007. Again, those penalties represent a small portion of the proceeds from their crimes as OxyContin accounted for roughly 90% of Purdue Pharma’s profits and they sold up to $3.1 billion of OxyContin in 2010.
Predictably, Purdue Pharma received such a mild penalty seemingly due to political connections. In 2002 Purdue Pharma hired Rudy Giuliani’s consulting firm, Giuliani Partners, to handle damage control. Giuliani reportedly received several million dollars for that contract. Rudy Giuliani was an ironic choice as he …show more content…
Many politicians have demonstrated no compassion with this issue because they were never arrested for their past drug use. For instance, it seems quite unlikely that Barack Obama would have become the first black President of the United States if he had been arrested for cocaine and marijuana, both of which he has admittedly used. In fact, Obama was reportedly such a weed aficionado that he mandated “Total Absorption” or “TA” when smoking among his group of close friends. According to David Maraniss, an Obama biographer, if someone didn’t fully absorb their hit off of a joint, they “were assessed a penalty” and their “turn was skipped the next time the joint came
Predictably, Purdue Pharma received such a mild penalty seemingly due to political connections. In 2002 Purdue Pharma hired Rudy Giuliani’s consulting firm, Giuliani Partners, to handle damage control. Giuliani reportedly received several million dollars for that contract. Rudy Giuliani was an ironic choice as he …show more content…
Many politicians have demonstrated no compassion with this issue because they were never arrested for their past drug use. For instance, it seems quite unlikely that Barack Obama would have become the first black President of the United States if he had been arrested for cocaine and marijuana, both of which he has admittedly used. In fact, Obama was reportedly such a weed aficionado that he mandated “Total Absorption” or “TA” when smoking among his group of close friends. According to David Maraniss, an Obama biographer, if someone didn’t fully absorb their hit off of a joint, they “were assessed a penalty” and their “turn was skipped the next time the joint came