Purdue Pharma Agrees to $8.34 Billion Fine

Purdue Pharma reached a settlement with the Justice Department to plead guilty to three felonies and incur an $8.34 billion fine. It filed for bankruptcy last year, under the pressure of lawsuits from dozens of states and localities, as well as pressure from the Department of Justice, which began investigating the company in 2017 (under the Trump Administration). Purdue makes OxyContin, and has been accused of misleading marketing that has helped to create the opioid crisis that has claimed so many lives.