Oxycontin Makers Misled Public About Addictive Painkiller ROANOKE, Va.. - The maker of the powerful painkiller OxyContin and three of its current and former executives pleaded guilty Thursday to misleading the public about the drug's risk of addiction, a federal prosecutor and the company said. Purdue Pharma LP, its president, top lawyer and former chief medical officer will pay $634.5 million in fines for claiming the drug was less addictive and less subject to abuse than other pain medications, U.S. Attorney John Brownlee said. [continues 416 words]
The drug-related indictments of the Henry County sheriff and his officers are the talk of the town in this rural Virginia county, but residents are more concerned about their community's image than the case itself. "People are talking it up," said Chris Shuler, a beer truck driver from Horsepasture. "It just makes it harder for the county to move on." For several years now, there has been no chance to move on as one blow after another has hit this county of 56,000 residents in the Blue Ridge foothills along the North Carolina line. [continues 492 words]
