States say OxyContin maker Purdue should not pay bonuses
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (AP) — Attorneys general from 24 states are telling a judge that OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma should not be allowed to pay $38 million in bonuses and severance packages to employees as it goes through bankruptcy.
The company is in bankruptcy as it tries to settle 2,600 lawsuits against it over the toll of the nation’s opioid crisis.
It has said it needs to make bonus payments to keep employees at a time of high turnover. A government bankruptcy trustee objected to the request last week, and the bankruptcy judge has scheduled an upcoming hearing on the issue.
Thursday’s filings on the bonus question come a day before the deadline on a key matter in the bankruptcy: Whether states can continue their lawsuits against members of the Sackler family, which owns Purdue.