Purdue Pharma CEO bonus opposed by Blumenthal, other senators

[TexasTowelie]

By Paul Schott


STAMFORD — Eleven U.S. Senate Democrats, including Richard Blumenthal and presidential candidates Cory Booker, Amy Klobuchar, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, are opposing a proposed $1.3 million bonus for bankrupt OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma’s CEO — a move that aligns them with two dozen state attorneys general, including Connecticut’s, who reject the plan.

The senators outlined their position in a letter Tuesday that cited Craig Landau being named as a defendant in a number of lawsuits, including one from Massachusetts, that allege the company fueled the opioid crisis with deceptive OxyContin marketing. They also argued that his payout would be based on performance incentives similar to those used to ramp up opioid sales.

“Instead of taking this opportunity to adjust its priorities, Purdue is fighting to maintain an incentive structure that could result in the unwarranted prescription and irresponsible distribution of drugs,” the senators wrote in the letter to Purdue’s board of directors. “By maintaining the aggressive incentive plan for Mr. Landau, the board is showing it does not recognize the role the incentive program played in accelerating the opioid crisis into a national tragedy.”

Sens. Tammy Baldwin, of Wisconsin; Sherrod Brown, of Ohio; Dianne Feinstein, of California; Maggie Hassan, of New Hampshire; Joe Manchin, of West Virginia; and Ed Markey, of Massachusetts, also signed the letter.

Read more: https://www.nhregister.com/business/article/Purdue-Pharma-CEO-bonus-opposed-by-Blumenthal-14916533.php
(New Haven Register)