Jason Votrobek was convicted in 2014 on drug trafficking and money laundering charges and later sentenced to 15 years in federal prison.
Votrobek talks to Business Insider about his early days smuggling cocaine and his role in the prescription opioid trade. Votrobek co-owned and operated Atlanta Medical Group, a Georgia clinic that distributed large volumes of oxycodone and other prescription drugs.
He describes how pain clinics capitalized on the demand for prescription opioids. Lawsuits against companies like Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin, led to several changes in the system. Purdue and its owners agreed to pay up to $6 billion in a settlement tied to claims over their role in the opioid epidemic.
Although the “pill mill” era peaked in the early 2010s, the consequences persist. More than 107,000 Americans died from drug overdoses in 2023, with opioids, particularly fentanyl, responsible for the majority of those deaths.
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