A coalition of advocacy groups and families affected by the opioid crisis sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General William Barr Aug. 31 asking him to pursue criminal charges against the Sackler family and other pharmaceutical executives for their role in the opioid crisis.
The Fed Up coalition, consisting of almost 60 groups and families, accused pharma executives of creating a "man-made plague."
"An important lesson from the opioid crisis is that fines and settlements paid by opioid manufacturers and distributors are not an adequate deterrence. It is clear from their actions that the individuals controlling these companies see fines and settlements as the cost of doing business," the groups wrote.
"The trajectory of the opioid crisis would likely have been far less severe if, from the beginning, opioid industry executives were prosecuted for the actions they took that led to addiction and death. But it is not too late to act," the groups wrote.
The advocates are asking the U.S. Department of Justice to pursue executives at AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health, McKesson, Johnson & Johnson, Mallinckrodt and other drug companies as well as Purdue Pharma.
The Justice Department has been negotiating civil and criminal charges against Purdue Pharma, but the advocates argue that authorities should pursue individual Sackler family members since they controlled the company.
Read the full letter here.