NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Members of the family of the late Dr. Mortimer Sackler commented today on the conditional confirmation of Purdue Pharma’s Plan of Reorganization and the accompanying settlement agreement, which has received overwhelming support from U.S. states and local governments, tribes and thousands of private plaintiffs.
The Sackler families, as their part of this resolution, are relinquishing ownership of Purdue to a public benefit trust and contributing an additional $4.325 billion to fund life-saving overdose reversal and addiction treatment medicines, as well as important programs dedicated to prevention, education and research. The plan was conditionally confirmed by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York in White Plains, NY, and involves neither a finding of wrongdoing nor an admission of liability by any member of the Sackler families.
The statement from members of the family of the late Dr. Mortimer Sackler is as follows:
“We want to express our determination to make a constructive difference through this resolution. While we dispute the allegations that have been made about our family, we have embraced this path in order to help combat a serious and complex public health crisis. We hope that the resolution will signal the beginning of a far-reaching effort to deliver assistance where it is most needed.
It was always our desire for Purdue Pharma to help people by developing and manufacturing OxyContin, a prescription opioid medicine that has brought effective pain relief to millions of patients and continues to meet a critical medical need. It distresses us greatly that it also became involved in suffering from addiction or abuse. We are truly sorry for the suffering and loss people have experienced and recognize the anger or hurt that many people have felt alongside their grief.
We look forward to this resolution taking effect and providing resources to be used to the fullest extent possible to help people and communities in need. As is widely documented, the causes of addiction are many and multi-faceted and defy easy answers. It will take a comprehensive, society-wide response to address this challenge. We hope that this resolution will provide a meaningful contribution to that critical effort, while maintaining the availability of important medicines for patients in pain.”