McKinsey’s ‘Ghoulish’ Opioid Sales Advice Holds Legal Ground

Documents showing McKinsey & Company encouraged Purdue Pharma to pay out thousands in rebates per opioid overdose raise ethical red flags for the global consulting firm, but advice without implementation falls short of breaking the law, attorneys say.

Cash prizes and “unrivaled recognition” were among the perks McKinsey suggested to Purdue salespeople as part of a strategy to ramp up prescriptions for the highly addictive pain medication OxyContin, according to internal documents highlighted as part a congressional investigation. Attorneys say such actions may simply amount to callous advice without proof of a conspiracy or that they directly contributed to opioid ...