Barry Meier is a writer and former ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' journalist who wrote the 2003 non-fiction book '' Pain Killer: A Wonder Drug's Trail of Addiction and Death''. His articles "have led to Congressional hearings and changes in federal laws".

Education

Meier studied at

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

Career

In his career as journalist, Meier has specialized in reporting on business, public policy, and health and safety. He reported for ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'' for five years, worked at ''New York Newsday'' as a special projects reporter, and reported for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. According to his ''The Times'' profile, his articles published by ''The Times'' and elsewhere "have led to Congressional hearings and changes in federal laws."

“Pain Killer”

In 2001, Meier began investigating

Purdue Pharma Purdue Pharma L.P., formerly the Purdue Frederick Company, is an American privately held pharmaceutical company founded by John Purdue Gray. It was owned principally by members of the Sackler family as descendants of Mortimer and Raymond Sackler ...

and

OxyContin Oxycodone, sold under various brand names such as Roxicodone and OxyContin (which is the extended release form), is a strong, semi-synthetic opioid used medically for treatment of moderate to severe pain. It is highly addictive and a commonly ...

, when it was still a relatively unknown drug made by a relatively unknown family, the Sacklers, including

Mortimer Sackler Mortimer David Sackler (December 7, 1916 – March 24, 2010) was an American-born British psychiatrist and entrepreneur who was a co-owner, with his brother Raymond, of Purdue Pharma. During his lifetime, Sackler's philanthropy included donatio ...

and his brother

Raymond Sackler Raymond Sackler (February 16, 1920 – July 17, 2017) was an American physician and businessman. He acquired Purdue Pharma together with his brothers Arthur M. Sackler and Mortimer Sackler. Purdue Pharma is the developer of OxyContin, the dru ...

, their children and grandchildren—at that time "one of the wealthiest families in the United States". In an August 24, 2001 Meier recorded an interview with Purdue CEO Michael Friedman and executives Howard Udell and Dr. Paul Goldenheim, who told Meier "they had learned of OxyContin’s growing abuse only in early 2000, a statement they also made before congressional committees". They said the company had undertaken a "massive marketing campaign", based on a "unique claim" for OxyContin, with FDA permission, that, "as a long-acting opioid, it might be less likely to cause abuse and addiction than shorter-acting painkillers like

Percocet Oxycodone/paracetamol, sold under the brand name Percocet among others, is a fixed-dose combination of the opioid oxycodone with paracetamol (acetaminophen), used to treat moderate to severe pain. In 2020, it was the 69th most commonly presc ...

." In 2001 Meier published '' Pain Killer: A Wonder Drug's Trail of Addiction and Death''. A 2004 ''New York Times'' review of the book concluded: "For years, doctors who prescribed OxyContin were told that the risk of addiction to the painkiller was less than 1 percent. Only after the drug had devastated thousands of lives was it revealed that this figure, touted as scientific fact, was based on a small study that had no relevance for the general public."

Works

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meier, Barry Living people American columnists American male journalists Radical centrist writers The New York Times columnists Jewish American journalists 1949 births 21st-century American Jews