McKinsey Exec Grilled On Conflicting Opioid, FDA Consulting Work

The top executive for global consulting firm McKinsey & Co. faced congressional questions Wednesday about the company’s work for US health regulators even as it advised opioid drugmakers on how to boost sales of their prescription painkillers, Matthew Perrone AND Geoff Mulvihill kAND reported for the Associated Press (AP).

Photo Insert: A preliminary report from the committee found 22 McKinsey consultants who worked for both the FDA and an opioid manufacturer over the span of a decade.

The hearing before a House committee is part of an ongoing investigation into McKinsey’s role in the US opioid crisis that has been linked to over 500,000 overdose deaths from both prescription pain medications and illicit drugs like fentanyl.

Last year the consulting powerhouse agreed to pay $600 million to settle lawsuits over its work advising opioid makers, though it admitted no wrongdoing.

Members of the House Oversight and Reform Committee are questioning McKinsey’s top managing partner, Bob Sternfels, about revelations that the company allowed consultants working for OxyContin-maker Purdue Pharma to simultaneously advise the Food and Drug Administration, the agency tasked with overseeing drug safety.

A preliminary report from the committee found 22 McKinsey consultants who worked for both the FDA and an opioid manufacturer over the span of a decade.

The overlapping work included McKinsey staffers advising the FDA on overhauling its approach to drug safety, according to the committee’s review of thousands of company documents.

Meanwhile, McKinsey consultants recommended “cash prizes” and “unrivaled recognition” for top OxyContin sales reps to increase Purdue’s sales, according to a 2013 strategy presentation released Wednesday.

“McKinsey was advising both the fox and the hen-house — and getting paid by both,” said Chairwoman Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y. ”Clearly, McKinsey should not be setting strategy for both drug companies and the FDA.”

The report, written by the panel’s Democratic majority, suggests McKinsey’s work “appears potentially” to have violated federal contracting rules that require disclosing potential conflicts of interest.

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