1901152 of Representatives Gtummittee an the ?uhttiarp Washingtun, ?01 20515?6216 @112 itauuhreh ?atxteeuth QLungreas March 12, 2020 The Honorable William Barr Mr. Uttam Dhillon Attorney General Acting Administrator US. Department of Justice Drug Enforcement Administration 950 Avenue, NW 8701 Morrissette Drive Washington, DC 20530 Spring?eld, VA 22152 Dear Attorney General Barr and Acting Administrator Dhillon: I write to express my concern regarding the Department?s inability to hold prescription opioid distributors and chain pharmacies accountable in the wake of the national opioid epidemic. The numbers released by the DEA show that just six companies?McKesson Corp, Cardinal Health, Walgreens, AmerisourceBergen, CVS, and Walmart?distributed 76 percent of the oxycodone and hydrocodone pills nationwide. States, counties, tribes, and cities on the front lines of the crisis are attempting to hold these companies accountable for their distribution and dispensing of billions of pain pills. The Committee, however, is concerned with the Department?s lack of progress in actively pursuing civil enforcement actions or criminal investigations against the relevant corporate actors, as well as allegations of special access given by the Department to certain companies associated with the epidemic. From 2006 through 2014, the country was ?ooded with over 100 billion oxycodone and hydrocodone pain pills.1 Data released by the pain pill database show that ?the epidemic surged, increasing 52 percent from 8.4 billion in 2006 to 12.8 billion in 2011. Pill distribution started to decline in 2012, and the additional data shoWs that, by 2014, the number of pills distributed was 11.8 billion.?2 The ?ood of prescription pain pills has resulted in over 130,000 deaths from 2006 to 2014, with another 100,000 believed to have gone unrepm'ted.3 President Trump has publicly identi?ed addressing the opioid epidemic as one of the five key priorities for his Administration?going so far as to declare it- a national emergency.4 Understanding the need for greater coordination, then Attorney General Sessions subsequently Created the Prescription Interdiction and Litigation Task Force (PIL), with a focus on opioid . Drilling into the DEA ?s pain pill database, WASH. POST, Jan. 17, 2020. 2 Drilling into the DEA ?s pain pill database, WASH. POST, Jan, 17, 2020. 3 Jason Arunn Murugesu, US opioid crisis: 100, 000 Overdose deaths may have gone amounted, NEW SCIENTIST, Feb. 27, 2020. 4 White House, President Donald J. Trump is taking action on drug addiction and the opioid crisis (Oct. 26, 2017). Page 1 of 4 manufacturers and distributors.5 The Department also ?led a statement of interest6 relating to multi4district litigation involving nearly 2,000 cases brought by cities, tribes, and counties natiOnWide that was consolidated in the Federal District Court of Northern Ohio? Unfortunately, despite these statements by the President and the' Administration, the public has yet to see the Department of Justice take any meaningful action against the large-scale corporate distributors and chain pharmacies allegedly responsiblefor the opioid epidemic. These Companies are responsible for acting as the middlemen who ensure there is a steady supply of prescription opioids available to hospital, clinics, and drugstores. Existing lawsuits ?led by state attorneys general allege years-long efforts to circumvent the federal regulatory process meant to track suspicious opioid orders.8 The Department?s inaction is especially concerning considering the it?s well-publicized attempts to hold the executives of pharmaceutical companies,9 lesser?known distributors,10 manufacturers,? and doctors12 responsible. Furthermore, there remains ongoing concerns of a revolving door that exists between the Department,13 its enforcement arms such as the Drug Enforcement Agency and the companies at the heart of the crisis. As identi?ed by the Inspector General in a 2019 report reviewing the efforts to control the diversion of opioids, the Department has the enforcement tools it needs to stem the tide of opioids across the country, but it ?needs to more fully utilize its regulatory authorities and enforcement resources.?15 Finally, the Committee remains concerned about reports of senior Department 5 US. Dep?t of Justice, Attorney General Sessions announces new Prescription lnterdiction Litigation Task Force (Feb. 27, 2018). 6 Katie Benner Jan Hof?nan, Justice Dept. backs high-stakes lawsuit against opioid makers, NY. TIMES, Feb. 27, 2018. 7 Jann Hoffman, Katie Thomas, and Danny Hakim, 3,271 Pill Bottles, a Town of 2, 83 1 Court Filings Say Corporations Fed Opioid Epidemic, NY. TIMES, July 20, 2019. 3 Danny Hakim, William K. Rashbaum, Roni Caryn Rabin, The giants at the heart of the opioid crisis, NY. TIMES, April 22, 2019 (?New civil suits from the attorneys general in New York, Vermont and Washington State accuse distributors of brazenly devising systems to evade regulators. They allege that the companies warned many pharmacies at risk of being reported to the Drug Enforcement Administration, helped others to increase and circumvent limits on how many opioids they were allowed to buy, and often gave advance notice on the rare occasions they performed audits?) 9 See e. Sara Randazzo, Purdue settlement hinges on deal with Justice Department, documents show, WALL ST. ., Oct. 9, 2019. 10 See e. Lenny Bernstein, Prosecutors bring rare criminal charges against Ohio opioid distributor, WASH. POST, July 18, 2019 (prosecution of pharmaceutical distributor Miami?Luken and its corporate executives). See e. Gabrielle Emanuel, Opioid?maker Insys admits to bribing doctors, agrees to pay $225 million settlement, NPR, June 5, 2019 (civil and criminal investigation into manufacturer Insys Therapeutics) ?2 See e. Texas Doctor Howard Gregg Diamond sentenced to 20 years in prison for overdose deaths, CBS-DFW, May 9, 2019 (prosecution of Doctor Howard Gregg Diamond). '3 Justice Department?s no. 3 official to take Walmart?s top legal job, ASSOCIATED PRESS, Feb. 10, 2018. 14 Scott Higham Lenny Bernstein, The drug industry?s triumph over the DEA, WASH. POST, Oct. 15, 2017. ?5 U.S. OF JUSTICE, OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL, REVIEW OF THE DRUG ENFORCEMENT REGULATORY AND ENFORCEMENT EFFORTS TO CONTROL THE DIVERSION OF OFIOIDS (Sept. Page 2 of 4 leadership overruling the decisions of career prosecutors in other contexts, such as the ?nancial crisis.16 It goes without saying that personal relationships or political interests should not interfere with the Department?s ability to ?ght the ?ood of prescription pain pills across the country. The effort to hold corporations accountable for the opioid epidemic has been led by the states, counties, tribes, and cities hit hardest by the crisis. The multi-district litigation represents a signi?cant step in potentially holding the largest distributors and chain pharmacies responsible. But the ongoing litigation should not prevent the Department from pursuing its own investigations, that may result in criminal prosecution or civil enforcement actions, to hold corporate actors accountable for the thousands of lives lost to prescription pain pills. In this regard, it is important that the nation?s leading law enforcement body actually serves the interest of the American people, which does not appear to be happening in this case. In light of these concerns, I request the following: 1. Documents and communications from May 1, 2017 to the present, between the Of?ce of the Attorney General, Of?ce of the Deputy Attorney General, or Of?ce of the Associate Attorney General relating to any civil enforcement actions or criminal investigations of McKesson Corp., Walgreens, Cardinal Health, AmerisourceBergen, CVS, or Walmart Inc involving violations of the Controlled Substances Act or False Claims Act. 2. Documents and communications from May 1, 2017 to the present, between the Of?ce of the Administrator of the DEA and the Of?ce of the Attorney General, Of?ce of the Deputy Attorney General, or Of?ce of the Associate Attorney General relating to any civil enforcement actions or criminal investigations of McKesson Corp., Walgreens, Cardinal Health, AmerisourceBergen, CVS, or Walmart Inc involving Violations of the Controlled Substances Act or False Claims Act. 3. Documents and communications from May 1, 2017 to the present, between the US. Attomey?s Of?ce for the Eastern District of Texas and the Of?ce of the Attorney General, Of?ce of the Deputy Attorney General, Of?ce of the Associate Attorney General, or the Consumer Protection Branch relating to any civil enforcement actions or criminal investigations of Walmart Inc. involving violations of the Controlled Substances Act or False Claims Act. 4. Documents and communications from May 2017 to the present, between the Of?ce of the Attorney General, Of?ce of the Deputy Attorney General, or Of?ce of the Associate 2019), (?We found that DEA was slow to respond to the signi?cant increase in the use and diversion of opioids since 2000. We also found that DEA did not use its available resources, including its data systems and strongest administrative enforcement tools, to detect and regulate diversion effectively.) See also id. at 15 (?Finally, beginning in 2013, DEA rarely used its strongest enforcement tool, the Immediate Suspension Order (ISO), to stop registrants from diverting prescription drugs, and DEA continues to experience challenges in rendering ?nal decisions on administrative actions in a timely ?6 See Jesse Eisinger, How Trump?s political appointees overruled tougher settlements with big banks, PROPUBLICA, Aug. 2, 2019. Page 3 of 4 Attorney General relating to any investigations involving Dr. Howard Gregg Diamond or Doctor Randall Wade. 5. Copies of any pharmaceutical memorandum of agreement between the DEA and McKesson Corp, Walgreens, Cardinal Health, AmerisourceBergen, CVS, or Walmart Inc. dating from January 1, 2010 to present. To the extent you may have concerns regarding the sensitive or con?dential nature of any of the requested materials, we stand ready to discuss a mutually acceptable accommodation. Your response to these concerns and cooperation with respect to these matters will assist the Committee as it ful?lls its constitutional oversight responsibilities and as it considers legislation related to the opioid epidemic. Thank you for your time and attention to this matter. Given the urgent and serious nature of these requests, I would ask that you provide the requested responses by no later than March 26, 2020. Sincerely, Jerrold Nadler Chairman cc: The Honorable Jim Jordan, Ranking Member, House Committee on the Judiciary Page 4 of 4