Drug companies involved in lawsuit also fueled Maine’s opioid epidemic, among the worst in the nation, yet Collins voted against holding opioid manufacturers accountable

Senator Susan Collins has taken $50,000 from the corporate PACs of four companies that just this week agreed to pay a “historic” $260 million settlement for their role in fueling the opioid epidemic, the latest reminder of Collins’ close ties to big drug companies that have turned a profit at the expense of Mainers’ health and safety. Over her career, Senator Collins has taken more than $1 million from big pharmaceutical companies and the insurance industry while repeatedly voting against measures to rein them in.

 

Two of the companies involved in this lawsuit, Cardinal Health and McKesson Corporation, were the top two opioid distributors in Maine from 2006 to 2012. The other two, AmerisourceBergen and Teva Pharmaceuticals, also ranked among the top opioid distributors and manufacturers in the state. Each of their corporate PACs has contributed thousands of dollars to Senator Collins. Maine, which has been hit harder by the opioid crisis than any other state in the Northeast, ranked among the top 10 states with the highest opioid overdose deaths and is home to four of the five counties with the highest rate of opioid pills distributed per person in the Northeast. Just last year, Senator Collins voted against holding opioid manufacturers accountable for their role in this deadly epidemic.

 

“Senator Collins’ allegiance to her big pharmaceutical industry donors may benefit her campaign’s bottom line, but it’s been devastating to families across Maine,” said Maine Democratic Party Chair Kathleen Marra. “As Maine has suffered through the opioid crisis that these corporations helped cause, Senator Collins has failed to hold them accountable, more proof that Mainers can’t trust her to do what’s right for us.”

 

More here on Senator Collins’ ties to the drug companies that fueled Maine’s opioid crisis:

 

  • Collins Took $25,000 From McKesson PAC. [FEC, accessed 10/21/19]

McKesson Corporation Was The Second Top Opioid Distributor In Maine, Distributing 68,759,790 Pills, Or More Than 50 Pills For Every Mainer. [Washington Post, 7/21/19]
 

  • Collins Took $11,500 From AmerisourceBergen PAC, Including $5,000 Just Days Before AmerisourceBergen Reached The Settlement For Its Role In The Opioid Crisis. [FEC, accessed 10/21/19] 

AmerisourceBergen Was The 7th Highest Opioid Distributor In Maine, Distributing 14,316,200 Pills To Mainers. [Washington Post, 7/21/19]
 

  • Collins Took $8,500 From Cardinal Health PAC. [FEC, accessed 10/21/19]

Cardinal Health Was The Top Opioid Distributor In Maine, Distributing 135,583,060 Pills, Or More Than 100 Pills For Every Mainer. [Washington Post, 7/21/19]
 

  • Collins Took $5,000 From Teva PAC. [FEC, accessed 10/21/19]

Teva Pharmaceuticals Was The 8th Highest Opioid Manufacturer In Maine, Manufacturing 2,787,400 Pills For Mainers. [Washington Post, 7/21/19]
 

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