Did Drug Maker Know of OxyContin Abuse?
OxyContin, a powerful painkiller introduced on the market seven years ago, has proven a wonder drug for many sufferers of persistent pain. But now, in the wake of conservative radio show host Rush Limbaugh’s announcement that he’s “addicted” to prescription pain medications — among them, OxyContin, according to law enforcement officials — much of the nation is aware that the drug can take powerful hold of people who misuse it. The front-page coverage of Limbaugh’s addiction comes as questions are already being raised in Congress about the company that makes OxyContin, Purdue Pharma Co. of Stamford, Conn. “My concerns,” said Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va., “are they have pushed the envelope to the point that a lot of innocent people have just been devastated by this drug.” New York Times reporter Barry Meier says in his upcoming book Pain Killer that Purdue Pharma failed early on to fully heed warnings its pain killer was becoming widely abused. “This public health epidemic played itself out in
