Contributor Jeff P.
Imagine this…There is a drug dealer in your neighborhood. He’s been there over the past dozen years. He deals a drug that is as dangerous as heroin. He was warned of the dangers. People told him that over a five year period, deaths resulting from the use of this drug that he distributed jumped over 400%! Despite these dangerous revelations, that information was pushed under the table and this dealer continued to sell. He made millions upon millions. He told people that the drug was safer, less addictive, and was meant to feel good without having to worry about abuse becoming a problem. This despite all the evidence. And then finally after twelve plus years of marketing and selling and making money hand over fist, it all comes crashing down…
If I gave you this scenario about your neighborhood, as a good law abiding American, you would demand justice. Significant jail time. Throw away the key. The more adamant people against crime might be screaming for the death penalty. And who could blame any of these people for suggesting these easures? Unfortunately, the scenario that I provided for you did not happen on the hard streets of some urban city. The decisions to sell were not made in back alleys. And money was not exchanged on some dark street where the street lights had been knocked out to conceal identities. These decisions were instead make in corporate boardrooms, with coat and tie executives hiding the ill effects of Oxycontin in order to protect their growing stock options and second homes in the hills. The money passed through pharmacies and doctor’s offices across the nation, with misinformation being distributed to the people we trust our well-being with so that a couple of fat cats could get rich. And the sentence for this … no prison time, no throwing away the keys, locking them under the jail. A fine, a large one at that, but still nothing more than a fine. Welcome to America!
Last week, Purdue Pharmaceutical pled guilty to misleading the public and misbranding their drug, despite almost a decade’s worth of information that pointed out the potentially devastating effects of their drugs. Today, the FDA estimates that Oxycontin could be the most abused prescription drug in the United States. For the blatant disregard for the public’s well being, three top Purdue executives who deliberately hid the information from the public will be fined $600 million. Now, I know that $600 million sounds like a lot …and it is. There is no disputing that. However, when you take into account that these top executives probably have millions of dollars tied up in stock options, 401K’s, potential interviews, and other financially lucrative opportunities, $600 million isn’t that bad of a price to pay to avoid prison time. Aside from the numbers and figures, how likely is it that these suits pay anyway?
What I think we really see happening here is a number of problems that need to be addressed … and they aren’t partisan to Republican or Democrats. First of all, there is a double standard in America. If you are a black heroin dealer in Gary, Indiana, you are going to prison. If you are sleek, white executive, who deals Oxycontin, you pay a fine. Secondly, our government is held hostage by special interests. As Americans, we should be outraged that white collar coat and ties are able to get away with this. However, since pharmaceutical companies accounted for over $100 million in campaign contributions in 2000 alone, Congress typically turns a blind eye towards the actions of the pharmaceutical industry. Finally, as our country focuses on murder, rape, and your more traditional forms of drug abuse, we have ignored the white collar improprieties of Halliburton, Enron, and now Purdue Pharmaceuticals.
Isn’t it time that we hold everyone (person and business alike) to the same level of accountability?
