L.A. Times Reveals that Purdue Pharma Knowingly Concealed Database of Bad Doctors
Overview
Originally Published: 08/17/2013
Post Date: 08/17/2013
by Marianne Skolek Salem-News.com
Summary/Abstract
"L.A. Times" reporters Scott Glover and Lisa Girion broke a news story that the maker of the deadly drug, OxyContin, Purdue Pharma, has a list of "about" 1,800 doctors who may have recklessly prescribed the highly addictive drug to addicts and dealers
Content
Purdue Pharma has reaped close to $30 billion in profits since the launch of OxyContin in 1996. Some of these profits were gained from the doctors on a list that Purdue Pharma has not released to authorities.
(MYRTLE BEACH, SC) - This week "L.A. Times" reporters Scott Glover and Lisa Girion broke a news story that the maker of the deadly drug, OxyContin, Purdue Pharma, has a list of "about" 1,800 doctors who may have recklessly prescribed the highly addictive drug to addicts and dealers. The problem is Purdue Pharms has not been alerting authorities to their list of "bad docs." Here is the link to the article http://www.latimes.com/news/ local/la-me-rx-purdue- 20130811,0,1420977.story.
Despite having this information that could have saved hundreds of thousands of people from death and addiction, Purdue Pharma has reaped close to $30 billion in profits since the launch of OxyContin in 1996. Some of these profits were gained from the doctors on the list that Purdue Pharma has not released to authorities.
Purdue Pharma, their funded pain foundations as well as Partnership for a Drug Free America a/k/a Partnership at a Drug Free. org. (Partnership) and advocacy groups profiting from Partnership have long focused on the prescription drug epidemic being caused by pharmacy robberies, doctor shopping and the famous "empty your medicine cabinets" and drug collection days. I have never bought what Partnership was selling. Now the "L.A. Times" reveals that Purdue Pharma knowingly concealed the fact that they had a data base of bad docs, I am not convinced that there may be 1,800 bad docs in the data base. My guess would be there are thousands more.
Robin Abrams, Purdue Pharma attorney said their data base was to steer its sales reps away from the risky doctors -- and policing the docs was not Purdue's responsibility. She further stated that the pharmaceutical company had alerted law enforcement or medical regulators to approximately 8% of the bad docs named in the data base. Criminal? There is more.
Abrams also believes that Purdue Pharma wanted to wait to share their suspicions when the analysis "showed some scientific validity" to its theories about the bad docs -- and they were convinced they were doing everything right for the right reasons.
Are you aware Ms. Abrams that when OxyContin first resulted in huge profits for Purdue Pharma, a lead counsel/executive for the company asked his secretary to search the Internet in order to confirm rumors they were hearing about problems of addiction, abuse and death with their blockbuster drug? The efficient secretary found so much evidence of an early problem with OxyContin that she prepared a report and put a copy on the desks of executives of the pharmaceutical company. When her boss discovered what she did, he ordered her to retrieve every copy of the report she prepared and destroy them. Yes Ms. Abrams there was cause when OxyContin was first launched to "share their suspicions" -- Purdue Pharma chose to cover it up.
You might not also be aware Ms. Abrams that Purdue Pharma has an ingenious patent that destroys emails and documents. A virus in the form of a Trojan horse is attached to files. It is a self-destruction document or email messaging system that automatically destroys documents or email messages at a predetermined time by attaching a "virus" to the document or email message. The virus contains a portion of executable code or an executable program which instructs the computer to overwrite and/or delete the file to which the virus is attached at a desired time. Since the virus is attached to the file, it will travel with the file even when the file is copied, forwarded, or saved to disks or tape drives. Right out of Mission Impossible -- but why add the extra feature of a virus? What could Purdue Pharma be trying to hide?
Think the "virus" might be applied to the data base of bad docs, Ms. Abrams?
The "L.A. Times" reported that starting in 2002 Purdue's sales reps were trained to report "red flags" in doctors' offices such as young patients, long lines, people nodding off in waiting rooms and frequent cash transactions. Purdue attorneys review their reports and if a doctor's practice is deemed too risky, the company bars sales representatives from marketing to the physicians. The suspect doctors are removed from the company's numbered sales territories and assigned to the database, known as "Region Zero." If this data base does still exists at Purdue Pharma and hasn't been destroyed by their patented "worm" it might be better called "Region Death" rather than "Region Zero."
Here is the patent information with Purdue Pharma's General Counsel, Howard Udell's name on it. Inventors:
Udell, Howard R. (US)
Baker, Stuart D. (US)
Kappel, Cary S. (US)
Sherman, Greg M. (US)
Ries, William (US)
Application Number:
EP19980934143
Publication Date:
05/17/2000
Filing Date:
06/16/1998
Also, Ms. Abrams you may find it interesting that not only was the late Howard Udell general counsel at Purdue Pharma, but he was also an "inventor." Udell pleaded guilty to misleading physicians and patients about the dangers of OxyContin. So when Purdue Pharma is asked to produce the "bad doc data base" will they reply "Wish we could have complied, but you see we have this patent -- and all that information was destroyed by a virus. Did we do something wrong -- again?"
Here is the patent information with Purdue Pharma's General Counsel, Howard Udell's name on it. Inventors:
Udell, Howard R. (US)
Baker, Stuart D. (US)
Kappel, Cary S. (US)
Sherman, Greg M. (US)
Ries, William (US)
Application Number:
EP19980934143
Publication Date:
05/17/2000
Filing Date:
06/16/1998
State Sen. Ted Lieu (D-Torrance, Cal.) said he sent a letter to Purdue asking the company to disclose the names of California doctors in its database. State Sen. Mark DeSaulnier (D-Concord, Cal.) said he would join Lieu in making the request of Purdue.
Ms. Abrams may want to educate herself more about the past deceptive practices of Purdue Pharma before she makes statements as ridiculous as "Purdue Pharma wanted to wait to share their suspicions when the analysis "showed some scientific validity" to its theories about the bad docs -- and they were convinced they were doing "everything right for the right reasons."
I compare this continued deception by Purdue Pharma in the mounting deaths and addiction of hundreds of thousands of people throughout the U.S. and Canada to a Monopoly game. They have passed go - made billions of dollars in their lies and concealing of information that could have prevented this horrific loss of lives and devastation to families -- now it's time to go directly to jail!