A Virginia attorney has filed a class action lawsuit against Purdue Pharma, the makers of the embattled pain killer OxyContin. The suit claims that the company intentionally created the powerful and addictive drug and failed to properly warn consumers of the medication's dangers. As a result, throngs of OxyContin users have become addicted to the pain killer, many losing jobs, families, and even their lives along the way.

OxyContin is a very profitable drug for Purdue, generating over $1 billion in sales during 2000. As such, the company is committed to portraying OxyContin as a safe and effective medication. Purdue officials called the lawsuit baseless and vowed to continue supplying drugs such as OxyContin to those suffering from severe pain.

In addition to the dangerous and addictive nature of OxyContin, the lawsuit alleges that Purdue used an overly aggressive marketing campaign to encourage doctors to prescribe the drug when not truly necessary. Critics charge the company of running misleading advertisements touting OxyContin as a wonder drug.

Plaintiffs involved in the Virginia suit include those who received the drug via a doctor's prescription and later became addicted, as well as family members of such people who have had to suffer the consequences of maintaining a relationship with an OxyContin addict. One plaintiff now has legal custody of her grandchildren after her daughter abandoned them during her battle with OxyContin addiction. This same plaintiff's cousin died of an overdose and she has a brother currently addicted to the drug.

OxyContin is a synthetic form of morphine.