CONFLICT=INTEREST

Sen. David Perdue Bought Stock in Opioid Alternatives While His Senate Committee held Opioid Crisis Hearings

In 2016, Perdue invested in a company that sold “pain management alternatives to opioids."

Sen. David Perdue (R-GA) bought and sold stock in a company that sold “pain management alternatives to opioids” while a Senate committee he was a member of held meetings on how to manage the opioid crisis in 2016, according to an 11Alive report. Perdue was not present for the Jan. 27 meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee, entitled “America’s Epidemic of Heroin and Prescription Drug Abuse,” but managed to buy $150,000 of stock in medical device manufacturer Halyard before and after the hearing, 11Alive reported. Perdue would sell off the stock just months later, after it had climbed nearly $13 a share in value.

The Georgia Republican is currently facing a tight race for re-election against Democrat Jon Ossoff, which could decide control of the U.S. Senate. Perdue had previously faced criticism for his stock deals with defense contractors and at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Perdue has denied any personal involvement with his stock deals, a claim that was later rebutted by the New York Times.