If you’ve been following the news lately, you may have heard about a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) entered into by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and the well-known global consulting firm, McKinsey & Company. Under the agreement, McKinsey agreed to pay a $31.5 million fine for its role in advising opioid manufacturers on how to increase their sales even as the opioid crisis ravaged American communities.
But what about “haks deferred prosecution agreement”? If you search for this phrase online, you may come up empty-handed. That’s because it’s actually a typo – the correct phrase is “HHS deferred prosecution agreement.”
What is the HHS DPA?
In November 2020, the DOJ announced that it had reached a $2.3 billion settlement with the pharmaceutical company Purdue Pharma over its role in the opioid epidemic. As part of that settlement, Purdue Pharma agreed to plead guilty to three felony charges and pay $8.3 billion in penalties and forfeitures.
But that’s not the only legal action that Purdue Pharma has faced in recent years. In October 2020, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that it had entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with Purdue Pharma in which the company agreed to pay $8 million to resolve allegations that it had violated the False Claims Act.
According to the HHS, the allegations centered on Purdue Pharma’s marketing of its prescription painkiller OxyContin. Specifically, the HHS alleged that Purdue Pharma had provided misleading information to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) about the safety and efficacy of OxyContin, which led to the submission of false claims for payment.
Under the terms of the DPA, Purdue Pharma agreed to cooperate with the HHS and other federal agencies in ongoing investigations, implement compliance measures, and report any future violations of the law. If Purdue Pharma abides by the terms of the DPA for three years, the HHS may dismiss the charges altogether.
What does this mean for the opioid epidemic?
While the HHS DPA may not have received as much media attention as the DOJ’s settlement with Purdue Pharma, it is still a significant development in the ongoing battle against the opioid epidemic. By holding Purdue Pharma accountable for its actions and requiring the company to implement measures to prevent future wrongdoing, the HHS is sending a strong message to other pharmaceutical companies that they will be held responsible for any role they may have played in the epidemic.
However, critics of the DPA argue that it does not go far enough in punishing Purdue Pharma for its actions. They point out that the $8 million fine is relatively small compared to the billions of dollars in profits that Purdue Pharma has generated from the sale of OxyContin, and that the company’s executives have not faced criminal charges for their role in promoting the drug.
Regardless of these criticisms, the HHS DPA represents an important step forward in the fight against the opioid epidemic. By holding Purdue Pharma accountable for its actions and requiring the company to take steps to prevent future wrongdoing, it provides a glimmer of hope that we may be able to stem the tide of opioid addiction and save lives.