NPR

Opioid Crisis: Filmmaker Details The Medical System's 'Crime Of The Century'

Documentary filmmaker Alex Gibney investigated the opioid crisis. He says it was created by pharmaceutical companies, distributors, pharmacists and doctors, all looking to profit.
Alex Gibney's new documentary on HBO is called <em>The Crime of the Century. </em>It details the role of the medical system in creating the opioid crisis.

The opioid crisis in the U.S. has never gone away.

Almost every year, more people die of opioid overdoses than in the year before. More than a half million people have died from prescription painkillers, heroin and illicit fentanyl since 1999. Provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that more than 66,000 people died of an opioid overdose in the U.S. in the 12 months to September 2020, a huge jump from the previous 12 months.

It's not just a crisis destroying communities and plunging countless people into addiction, but a crime, says documentary filmmaker Alex Gibney. His new documentary on HBO is called The Crime of the Century.

It's a crime, he says, that was committed by pharmaceutical companies,

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from NPR

NPR5 min read
Here's This Year's List Of The Most Endangered Historic Places In The U.S.
The National Trust's annual list includes Eatonville, the all-Black Florida town memorialized by Zora Neale Hurston, Alaska's Sitka Tlingit Clan houses, and the home of country singer Cindy Walker.
NPR6 min readSocial History
For Many Missouri Catholics, Abortion Rights Means Choosing Between Faith, Politics
The state is shaping up to be big battleground over abortion rights in November. Research shows a majority of U.S. Catholics supports abortion rights — even though church leadership does not.
NPR2 min read
3 Salad Recipes To Segue From Winter To Spring
Think of these three salad recipes as an introduction to a new season, a combination of color, textures and bright spring flavors. They are light but substantial and satisfying enough to be a main course for lunch or dinner. 

Related Books & Audiobooks