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Pain Killer: An Empire of Deceit and the Origin of America's Opioid Epidemic Kindle Edition

by Barry Meier (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 549 ratings
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From the Pulitzer Prize–winning New York Times reporter who first exposed the roots of the opioid epidemic and the secretive world of the Sackler family behind Purdue Pharma, Pain Killer is the celebrated landmark story of corporate greed and government negligence that inspired an upcoming Netflix series.  

“This is the book that started it all. Barry Meier is a heroic reporter and Pain Killer is a muckraking classic.”—Patrick Radden Keefe, author of Empire of Pain

Between 1999 and 2017, an estimated 250,000 Americans died from overdoses involving prescription painkillers, a plague ignited by Purdue Pharma’s aggressive marketing of OxyContin. Families, working class and wealthy, have been torn apart, businesses destroyed, and public officials pushed to the brink. Meanwhile, the drugmaker’s owners, Raymond and Mortimer Sackler, whose names adorn museums worldwide, made enormous fortunes from the commercial success of OxyContin.
 
In Pain Killer, Barry Meier tells the story of how Purdue turned OxyContin into a billion-dollar blockbuster. Powerful narcotic painkillers, or opioids, were once used as drugs of last resort for pain sufferers. But Purdue launched an unprecedented marketing campaign claiming that the drug’s long-acting formulation made it safer to use than traditional painkillers for many types of pain. That illusion was quickly shattered as drug abusers learned that crushing an Oxy could release its narcotic payload all at once. Even in its prescribed form, Oxy proved fiercely addictive. As OxyContin’s use and abuse grew, Purdue concealed what it knew from regulators, doctors, and patients.
 
Here are the people who profited from the crisis and those who paid the price, those who plotted in boardrooms and those who tried to sound alarm bells. A country doctor in rural Virginia, Art Van Zee, took on Purdue and warned officials about OxyContin abuse. An ebullient high school cheerleader, Lindsey Myers, was reduced to stealing from her parents to feed her escalating Oxy habit. A hard-charging DEA official, Laura Nagel, tried to hold Purdue executives to account.
 
In Pain Killer, Barry Meier breaks new ground in his decades-long investigation into the opioid epidemic. He takes readers inside Purdue to show how long the company withheld information about the abuse of OxyContin and gives a shocking account of the Justice Department’s failure to alter the trajectory of the opioid epidemic and protect thousands of lives. Equal parts crime thriller, medical detective story, and business exposé, Pain Killer is a hard-hitting look at how a supposed wonder drug became the gateway drug to a national tragedy.
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  1. Print length
    211 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Random House
  5. Publication date
    May 29, 2018
  6. File size
    979 KB
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From the Publisher

The book that started it all

“Groundbreaking” says Sam Quinones, author of Dreamland

A Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter’s landmark expose of the opiod crisis and the Sackler family

“A timely, compelling, important book” says The Seattle Times

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Prescient . . . a landmark work of investigative journalism.”—David A. Kessler, former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration and author of The End of Overeating
 
“Fascinating.”—The New York Times
 
“A timely, compelling, important book.”—The Seattle Times
 
“A thriller.”—Minneapolis Star-Tribune

“Powerful . . . [a] page-turning exposé.”—Salon

“An absorbing indictment of the modern health-care marketing industry, which, as depicted here, has blurred the line between medical ‘education’ and shilling.”—Publishers Weekly

About the Author

Barry Meier is a Pulitzer Prize-nominated investigative reporter for the New York Times and a 2002 recipient of a George Polk Award for outstanding journalism. He lives in New York City with his wife and daughter.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0782X9R1W
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Random House; 2nd edition (May 29, 2018)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 29, 2018
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 979 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 211 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 1529356164
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 549 ratings

About the author

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Barry Meier

Barry Meier

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Barry Meier is a former, long-time investigative reporter with The New York Times, who was a member of the Times team that won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting. He was the first journalist to shed a national spotlight on abuse of the powerful painkiller, OxyContin, and the secretive Sackler family which owned the drug's producer, Purdue Pharma. During his career, he also exposed the dangers of other drugs and medical devices. Along with Pain Killer, his books include Missing Man, which told the story of a former FBI agent who disappeared in Iran, and Spooked, which investigated the corporate investigations industry.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
549 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Lexilu1
5.0 out of 5 stars Opiods are Bad, Bad, Bad
Reviewed in the United States on September 25, 2023
Verified Purchase
I did see the series on Netflix about the opioid issue in out country and this book was a good, informative read. I was horrified what doctors were doing and what Predue Pharma did to people who took these drugs and how they got hooked and died taking them. YES, I had a doc or two tell me they were great, non addictive and safe...I did not drink the cool-aid. Any time a doctor pushes a lot about a drug or a new drug I see through that because they get a large cut from the pharmaceutical company. I am onto these doctors who are not looking out for MY best interests. In fact one doc I saw was busted by the DEA and was investigated. They had to shut their practice down for several years, but they are back at seeing patients again, disgusting. I am very allergic to them, frankly, do not like the high feeling they provide. The drug was originally for a patient with terminal cancer or end of life care, not general folks out there dealing with pain. It is sad because this drug killed so many people of all ages, broke up families and bankrupted many of them as well. It is still being prescribed but there extra strict precautions, warning and rules to follow now, thankfully.
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mpankeMPH
4.0 out of 5 stars An eye-opening look into the opioid epidemic
Reviewed in the United States on November 7, 2023
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As a public health professional, I have been a part of several initiatives to combat the opioid epidemic. However, I was too young to remember (or understand for that matter) the controversy surrounding Purdue Pharma and OxyContin. This book is a good place to start for anyone wanting to learn more about this topic. However, keep in mind that the book really only discusses 2 types of opioids, MS Contin and OxyContin and the marketing strategies that were used to promote them. If you’re wanting to learn more about other types of opioids that are in the media today, or you know someone affected by these drugs this book may not be for you. The book delves into real stories of addiction so it’s something to consider before diving head first into the book.
2 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Love this book
Reviewed in the United States on October 30, 2023
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The book was very informative about what going on today and how we got where we are today
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Cynthia M Cooper
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome reading
Reviewed in the United States on November 4, 2023
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This book is about the people who make Oxycodne
One person found this helpful
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B.K.
5.0 out of 5 stars B.K.
Reviewed in the United States on September 20, 2023
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Excellent!!! A+++++
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Laura Covone
3.0 out of 5 stars Opoid Crisis
Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2024
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I enjoyed Barry Meier reporting and the look back at how OxyContin became a known epidemic of abuse . I do wish however there was more in depth discussion and coverage of the Sackler Family and the internal machinations of Purdue pharma.
One person found this helpful
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Custom900
4.0 out of 5 stars Oxy
Reviewed in the United States on September 5, 2023
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I watched the Netflix series on this issue. I was quite surprised by the differences in the two stories. Difference in telling of the story. Same conclusions but different emphasis.
One person found this helpful
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Debra Shippey
5.0 out of 5 stars The book
Reviewed in the United States on August 29, 2023
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Looks brand new , appreciate that
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Top reviews from other countries

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London Lass
5.0 out of 5 stars Addictive products peddled in pursuit of profit
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 5, 2023
Verified Purchase
The US Hillbilly Heroin problem was starting to make the news in the UK in the early noughties, but it took nearly a decade for Purdue Pharma to admit to wrongdoing. This scandalous story of a company peddling addictive products in pursuit of profit is well-told by investigative journalist Barry Meier.
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M
4.0 out of 5 stars Ein früher Bericht über ein hartnäckiges US-Problem
Reviewed in Germany on December 15, 2018
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Das Buch ist historisch detailliert in seinem Bericht über die US-amerikanische Drogenepeidemie und die einzige Firma und Familie, die für einen Großteil davon verantwortlich ist. Obwohl einige Gründe angeführt werden, lässt sich nicht erklären, warum das Drogenproblem ständig auf die heutigen epischen Ausmaße angewachsen ist. Ich hätte mir auch mehr mögliche Lösungen für dieses Problem gewünscht.
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P. A. Buchan
5.0 out of 5 stars An Excelent Summary of the US Opioid Crisis
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 4, 2019
Verified Purchase
There are 2 other books, "Dopesick," and, "American Overdose," which are more detailed and very personal, where they talk to familys and friends of people no longer alive because of this crisis. That makes the feeling of the lack of accountability very hard to take. The injustice of it all, that the drug companies are not held accountable for the carnage they have caused.
Barry Meier's book is equally as important because if you a require 192 page summary of the crisis with all the; characters, companies, reasons, causes, lack or response, lack of accountability and you only want to read 1 book. Then this is the one. If this read makes you interested in the subject then the other 2 that i have mentioned provide a level of detail as they are very specific to the epicentre of the epidemic in West Virginia with real people and a better understanding of the causes.
I learned a new word reading these books, "iatrogenic," Which means, "illness caused by medical examination or treatment." Where you can go to the doctor with a pain and they give you such strong opioids to cure that pain, that when you follow the recommended treatment, you can become addicted. That is whats so wrong, normal people, go to the doctor for treatment after a sports injury, fall, car crash etc can take pain killers and become addicted to them.
Shame on you Purdue Pharma and the Agencies that allowed it to happen, because money talks.
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