Virginia AG's office helps deliver $650M settlement in opioid case
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In a groundbreaking settlement, McKinsey & Co. agreed to pay $650 million to resolve a federal criminal investigation into its role in advising Purdue Pharma on boosting OxyContin sales. This marks the first time a management consulting firm has been held criminally responsible for its part in a client's criminal actions.
“By holding McKinsey accountable for its role in enabling Purdue Pharma’s reckless promotion of OxyContin, an addictive opioid that devastated communities across Virginia and the nation, treating innocent lives as mere chemistry experiments, this historic $650 million resolution sends a clear message: no one, not even the world’s largest consulting firm, is above the law,” said Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares.
The agreement acknowledges McKinsey's part in misbranding prescription drugs and obstructing justice by destroying and concealing related documents. Martin Elling, a former McKinsey senior partner involved in Purdue's affairs, faces federal obstruction of justice charges in Abingdon, Virginia.
Virginia's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, alongside U.S. Attorney's Offices in Virginia and Massachusetts, investigated McKinsey's dealings with opioid manufacturers like Purdue Pharma. The MFCU's thorough review involved over 6.5 million pages of evidence, led by its eDiscovery team. Virginia Senior Assistant Attorneys General Kimberly Bolton and Kristin Gray served as Special Assistant United States Attorneys, prosecuting the case in federal court. Virginia was the only state MFCU that collaborated with the Justice Department on the effort.