CT leaders to raise awareness of Act that would close Purdue Pharma bankruptcy loophole – WTNH.com

HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) Some Connecticut leaders are taking on Big Pharma Monday.

U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal and Attorney General William Tong will meet at the state Capitol in Hartford to raise awareness about an act that would close a bankruptcy loophole that would allow big companies to avoid paying the full amount of the lawsuits filed against them.

A proposed bankruptcy for Stamford-based Purdue Pharma would require the Sackler Family to pay over nine years only a small fraction of the fortune that they amassed through the sale of opioids. Tong and Blumenthal say thats unacceptable.

Recently, the Sackler family, the owners of Stamford-based Purdue Pharma, the maker of Oxycontin, declared Chapter 11 Bankruptcy.

That followed a series of lawsuits filed against them due to opioid overdoses.

More than a thousand families wrecked by the addiction and opioid crisis in our state. And I dont see any recognition by the Sacklers or Purdue that they played an essential role in this or that theyre responsible, Attorney General Tong said.

The Justice Department blasted Perdue Pharmas bankruptcy plan, saying it allowed the company to avoid liability for alleged wrongdoing by profiting off of one of the most severe public health crises the United States has ever experienced.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), opioid overdose deaths have claimed more than 500,000 lives since 1999.

The state leaders will discuss the SACKLER Act (Stop Shielding Assets from Corporate Known Liability by Eliminating Non-Debtor Releases) in Hartford at noon Monday.

Later this week, Tong will testify before a House Judiciary subcommittee on this very issue.

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CT leaders to raise awareness of Act that would close Purdue Pharma bankruptcy loophole - WTNH.com