American Cartel

“An eye-opening, shocking and deeply documented investigation of the opioid crisis by two great reporters. This is not just about the greed of the pharmaceutical companies. AMERICAN CARTEL exposes the sweeping moral corruption of some senior officials in the Department of Justice, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Congress, and the practice of medicine and law. The ultimate corruption is the collective failure to see, define and act on the larger public interest to address a true national emergency.”

"A story of courageous heroes fighting the opioid crisis, AMERICAN CARTEL reads like a thriller.  At the same time, it is a vivisection of the political and corporate corruption that allows pharmaceutical firms to profit from despair. AC follows a group of modern-day “private eyes” as they investigate players much bigger than the Sacklers, including some of America’s biggest companies and most powerful members of Congress. Like a riveting true crime story, AC “follows the money” through the revolving doors of Washington, into the swamp of lobbyists and white collar drug rings who recklessly peddle narcotics for billions of dollars as hundreds of thousands of Americans die of overdoses."

“Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz are two of the most tenacious investigative reporters in journalism. For years they dug into America’s opioid epidemic, unearthing a pattern of callousness and recklessness within the drug industry. With a fast-paced and absorbing narrative, and dismaying documentary evidence, they recount how powerful interests abetted widespread addiction and abuse – and how a few determined individuals fought for years to finally hold them to account.”

“A fast-paced chronicle of astonishing corporate greed and appalling government complicity, AMERICAN CARTEL offers a panoramic account of how the opioid crisis was initiated by rapacious Pharma executives, exacerbated by mercenary lobbyists and lawyers, and sustained by bought-off politicians. With their trademark deep reporting and an appropriate sense of moral outrage, Horwitz and Higham have delivered a trenchant and utterly damning indictment of the powerful forces that benefited from an American tragedy.”

"AMERICAN CARTEL is a riveting, page-turner that illuminates how the revolving door of former government employees enabled the industry they once regulated to thwart courageous efforts to reign in the opioid epidemic. Shady politicians, conspiring lobbyists, larger-than-life attorneys and shocking stats - this book unveils exactly how and why the epidemic came to be—and who’s responsible."

“Expertly researched and a worthy addition to the growing canon of opioid literature.”

"Higham and Horwitz paint a highly disturbing picture that makes clear that companies ostensibly in the business of supplying needed pain medications acted instead like a cartel that wrought more pain and death than the syndicates smuggling cocaine and heroin into the country. This is a must-read for voters and political leaders alike."

“A stunning depiction of corruption in the drug industry and those who confronted it…In brisk, often harrowing chapters, the authors present riveting descriptions of government investigations into the crisis, struggles to thwart those investigations by targeted corporations and their allies, and the (ongoing) courtroom proceedings that have revealed an astoundingly expansive web of negligence, greed, and callousness.”

“Higham and Horwitz paint a highly disturbing picture that makes clear that companies ostensibly in the business of supplying needed pain medications acted instead like a cartel that wrought more pain and death than the syndicates smuggling cocaine and heroin into the country. This is a must-read for voters and political leaders alike.”

“AMERICAN CARTEL is a compelling and detailed inside look at the Herculean efforts by trial lawyers to hold opioid manufacturers and distributors accountable for causing this country’s heart breaking addiction epidemic. This book provides a front row seat to an epic fight for justice.” 

"AMERICAN CARTEL joins a small shelf of important books, including Dopesick and Empire of Pain, that fully capture the greed and corruption fueling the nation’s drug nightmare."

"...the perspective that Horwitz and Higham bring is fresh and important."

“AMERICAN CARTEL is a must read that demonstrates the continued importance of high-quality investigative journalism in today’s world and how greed allowed a national emergency to sweep the country unchecked.”