{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://www.warren.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/warren-markey-lead-colleagues-in-questioning-dojs-about-its-settlement-with-purdue-pharma-and-the-sackler-family", "Warren, Markey Lead Colleagues in Questioning DOJ's about its Settlement with Purdue Pharma and the Sackler Family", "2020-11-20", "2020", "2020-11", "Democrat", "Senate", "MA", "Elizabeth Warren", "W000817", "www.warren.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "November 20, 2020\n\t\t\t Warren, Markey Lead Colleagues in Questioning DOJ's about its Settlement with Purdue Pharma and the Sackler Family \n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tAgreement allows Purdue to\r\nrestructure and continue to sell opioids under an unusual business partnership\r\nwith State and local governments \"Purdue and the Sackler\r\nfamily must be held fully accountable for their role in accelerating the\r\nnation's deadly opioid crisis\" Text\r\nof Letter (PDF) WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) and Ed Markey\r\n(D-Mass.) led their colleagues in sending a letter requesting information from\r\nthe Department of Justice (DOJ) regarding its settlement agreement with Purdue\r\nPharma (Purdue) and the Sackler Family, including a proposal for Purdue's\r\nreorganization into a \"public benefit company\" (PBC). The letter was also signed by Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van\r\nHollen (D-Md.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.). Last month, DOJ announced a resolution of its civil and criminal\r\ninvestigations into Purdue and its role in contributing and accelerating the\r\nopioid epidemic that has claimed an estimated 400,000 lives and generated $35\r\nbillion in revenue for Purdue. The settlement agreement includes a provision\r\nthat would allow Purdue to emerge\r\nfrom bankruptcy as a PBC, owned by a trust or similar entity, with proceeds\r\ndirected toward State and local governments. Purdue's reorganization as a PBC could create a significant conflict of\r\ninterest by giving the same states and local governments that are responsible\r\nfor regulating the opioid industry a financial interest in the sale of opioids.\r\nTwenty-five state attorneys general have publicly opposed the PBC provision in\r\nDOJ's settlement agreement with Purdue and urged DOJ to rescind it. \"DOJ failed to do its job. The Sacklers' OxyContin business doesn't\r\ndeserve special treatment, and we'll fight to stop it,\" said\r\nAttorney General Maura Healey. \"This is the same business that\r\nravaged our communities for far too long. I'm proud of and grateful to our\r\nMassachusetts senators and their colleagues who are sounding the alarm and\r\nseeking the answers that families and survivors deserve.\" \"This unusual arrangement would result in the company shedding almost\r\nits entire liability while allowing it to remain an active opioid seller, in a\r\nbusiness partnership with the state and local governments that have sued\r\nPurdue,\" the senators wrote. Despite the questions and concerns raised by this proposal, and the\r\nsignificant ramifications on, and opposition of, state and local governments,\r\nvictims and survivors, and other stakeholders, DOJ appears to have rushed to\r\nfinalize and announce the agreement without providing the opportunity for\r\nimpacted parties to provide appropriate input. \"Purdue and the Sackler family must be held fully accountable for their\r\nrole in accelerating the nation's deadly opioid crisis,\" the\r\nsenators wrote. \"The proposed restructuring of the company,\r\nhowever, seems to hamstring the ability of state and local governments, victims\r\nand survivors, and other stakeholders to do so, reducing the company's\r\nliability, and allowing it to continue, under an unusual business partnership, to\r\nsell opioids.\" The senators ask DOJ to provide information related to its decision to enter\r\ninto the settlement, including information about DOJ's process for deciding to\r\ninclude Purdue's reorganization as part of the settlement agreement, what\r\nalternatives it considered, the precedent for such a decision, and how DOJ\r\nassessed the value of the public benefit company. Last week, Senator Warren called\r\non DOJ to stop plans to allow the transformation of Purdue as a public trust or\r\ninto a public benefit company. ###\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t  \n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t \n\t\t\n\t\t\tPrint\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tEmail\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tTweet\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t \n\t\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n    \n\t\n\t\n    \n    \n    \n    \t\n    \t\n\t    \t  \n\t\t    \n\t\t    \n\t\t    \tPrevious Article", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://www.warren.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/warren-markey-lead-colleagues-in-questioning-dojs-about-its-settlement-with-purdue-pharma-and-the-sackler-family"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5843040309846401, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}