EBay Will Pay $59 Million Settlement Over Pill Presses Sold Online As US Undergoes Overdose Epidemic

Washington (A.P.) — In a deal with the Justice Department, e-commerce giant eBay will pay $59 million for thousands of pill press machines sold on its platform.

The machines can be used to make counterfeit pills that appear like prescription tablets but are tainted with drugs such as fentanyl, a synthetic opioid narcotic that is largely responsible for the biggest overdose catastrophe in U.S. history. The corporation did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

EBay Will Pay $59 Million Settlement Over Pill Presses Sold Online As US Undergoes Overdose Epidemic

Sellers of pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment must verify customers’ names, retain records, and report to the Drug Enforcement Administration to ensure that the machines are traceable and not used illegally.

The Justice Department claims that eBay failed to meet the criteria for thousands of pill presses and pill-filling encapsulating machines, including high-capacity pill presses capable of generating thousands of tablets per hour.

The company, which offers a platform for consumers to conduct their online sales, stated in a settlement agreement that it is not subject to those reporting requirements.

In hundreds of cases, pill-press buyers purchased counterfeit moulds or dies that allowed them to produce pills that looked like actual prescription medications, according to police. According to the Justice Department, many people who purchased pill presses on eBay have now been charged in cases involving illicit counterfeit drugs.

EBay Will Pay $59 Million Settlement Over Pill Presses Sold Online As US Undergoes Overdose Epidemic

“Counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl are a significant contributor to the deadly overdose epidemic,” Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta stated.

According to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, drug overdoses caused more than 100,000 deaths in 2022, with fentanyl or comparable synthetic substances accounting for more than two-thirds of those. The epidemic initially focused on prescription painkillers, which gained appeal in the 1990s, and later heroin. Over the last decade, the mortality toll has reached an all-time high, with synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, which are widely available on the street, being the leading cause.

“Through its website, eBay made it easy for individuals across the country to obtain the type of dangerous machines that are often used to make counterfeit pills,” said U.S. Attorney Nikolas Kerest of Vermont.

EBay Will Pay $59 Million Settlement Over Pill Presses Sold Online As US Undergoes Overdose Epidemic

The corporation has committed to strengthening its compliance programme for pill presses, counterfeit moulds, stamps, dies, and pill-filling devices.

The company’s failure to follow “basic reporting and record keeping requirements” allowed people to “set up pill factories in their homes and do so without detection,” according to U.S. Attorney Henry Leventis for the Middle District of Tennessee.

SOURCE – (AP)