Senators question FDA on work with opioid maker consultant

Several U.S. senators are questioning the Food and Drug Administration’s work with a consulting firm that helped businesses sell prescription painkillers during the nation’s overdose crisis

Several U.S. senators are questioning the Food and Drug Administration’s work with a consulting firm that helped businesses sell prescription painkillers during the nation's overdose crisis. Democrat Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire and Republican Chuck Grassley of Iowa, among others, have asked the FDA about potential conflicts of interest in its work with McKinsey and Co. The senators sent a letter Monday to the FDA noting that the agency paid McKinsey more than $140 million after hiring it several times starting in 2008. While helping the government, McKinsey “also worked for a wide range of actors in the opioid industry, including many of the companies that played a pivotal role in fueling the opioid epidemic that our country now faces,” the letter said.