By Steve Neavling
The DEA’s second-in-command has resigned after the Associated Press revealed that he had previously worked for the pharmaceutical industry.
Louis Milione spent four years consulting for Big Pharma before he returned to the DEA in 2021 to serve as Administrator Anne Milgram’s top deputy.
The AP reported on Wednesday that he “quietly stepped down” after the news organization’s report that he once consulted for a pharmaceutical distributor that faced sanctions for “a deluge of suspicious painkiller shipments.” He also did similar work for $600 an hour for Purdue Pharma, which became the face of the opioid epidemic when it launched OxyContin.
“Working for Purdue Pharma should not help you get a higher job in government,” said Jeff Hauser, the executive director of the Revolving Door Project, a watchdog for corporate influence in the federal government. “Too much collegiality is a problem. It’s hard to view your past and potentially future colleagues as scofflaws. Any independent person would find this abhorrent.”
Milione had worked for the DEA for 21 years when he initially left the agency in 2017 and began working for the same companies he had regulated.
In a written statement this week, Milione insisted he resigned for personal reasons that weren’t connected to the AP’s reporting. He also said his consulting work was intended to help drug companies comply with DEA rules.
“I care deeply about the DEA, its mission and the brave men and women that sacrifice so much to protect the American public,” he said.
