BBC News
Published
image copyrightReuters
image captionAn estimated 450,000 people are estimated to have died from opioid overdoses between 1999 and 2018
McKinsey has agreed to pay $573m (£419m) to resolve claims it faced across the US related to its role fuelling America s opioid epidemic.
The consulting firm was under investigation for its work with Purdue Pharma, which aimed to boost sales of the addictive Oxycontin painkiller.
McKinsey maintained that its past work was lawful and denied wrongdoing.
But California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said the firm had been part of a machine that. destroyed lives .
Prosecutors said McKinsey had worked on strategies to turbocharge Oxycontin sales, advising Purdue to increase sales calls to doctors known to be high prescribers and to subvert restrictions on higher dosages that authorities wanted to impose.
| UPDATED: 14:39, Fri, Feb 5, 2021
Link copied Sign up for FREE now and never miss the top Royal stories again.
SUBSCRIBE Invalid email
When you subscribe we will use the information you provide to send you these newsletters.
Sometimes they ll include recommendations for other related newsletters or services we offer.
Our Privacy Notice explains more about how we use your data, and your rights.
You can unsubscribe at any time.
There was extraordinary excitement when three previously unheard tracks were unearthed after the star s death. The songs Breaking News, Monster and Keep Your Head Up were included on the posthumous album Michael, with reports that Sony has also bought another nine tracks from the two producers who claimed to have made secret recordings with the star. In 2014, a fan went to court in California claiming it was not MJ s voice at all on the three songs. At the time, legal documents filed said Sony Music and the Michael Jackson Estate conceded in trial
Winnipeg Free Press By: Geoff Mulvihill, The Associated Press Posted:
Last Modified: 3:41 PM CST Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021
The global consulting firm McKinsey & Company agreed to pay nearly $600 million for its role in advising businesses on how to sell more prescription opioid painkillers amid a nationwide overdose crisis.
FILE - This Feb. 19, 2013, file photo shows OxyContin pills arranged for a photo at a pharmacy in Montpelier, Vt. The global business consulting firm McKinsey & Company has agreed to a $573 million settlement over its role in the opioid crisis, according to a person with knowledge of the deal. An announcement is expected Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021. (AP Photo/Toby Talbot, File)