What do conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh, singer Courtney Love, and deceased actor Heath Ledger all have in common? The answer, according to published reports, is that all battled addiction to OxyContin, an opioid pain reliever now sometimes called “rich man’s heroin” but known on the street simply as “Killer.”
The sources of the opioid epidemic are complex, but one powerful motivator has been the pursuit of profit. Purdue Pharma, which calls itself a “pioneer in developing medications for reducing pain, a principal cause of human suffering,” is the producer of OxyContin, a timed-release formulation of oxycodone, an opioid pain reliever.
OxyContin, like other prescription opioids such as hydrocodone, has become far more commonly prescribed over the past few decades. Today enough opioid prescriptions are written each year in the United States to give every adult American his or her own one-month supply.
A Family Firm Creates a New Pain Drug
Purdue Pharma was founded in the late 19th century in New York City, and the firm was purchased in the 1950s by the Sackler brothers—Arthur, Raymond, and Mortimer—three physicians. Some years later, the firm began producing opioid pain relievers.
One of the Sackler brothers, Arthur, who died in 1987, had been inducted into the Medical Advertising Hall of Fame for his promotional work in helping Valium to become the first $100 million drug.
In 1996, Purdue Pharma introduced a new drug—a time-released formulation of oxycodone, an opioid painkiller. OyxContin, as the drug was called, was touted as having a low risk of addiction.
