When is $500 million a small amount of money? 

What does Dr. Richard Sackler sound like? And what will come of the drug companies at the heart of the opioid crisis?

We discuss all that and more on the latest episode of “The Readout LOUD,” STAT’s biotech podcast. We're devoting the entire episode to what has been a massive week of news on the opioid crisis. First, we'll break down Purdue Pharma's reported proposal to settle a host of lawsuits for upward of $8 billion and the implications of a state court ruling that went against Johnson & Johnson. Then, STAT managing editor Gideon Gil joins us to discuss a three-year legal fight with Purdue that will soon result in unsealed documents on the company's opioid marketing. Finally, we'll talk about what comes next in the opioid saga.

You can listen to the episode here. To listen to future episodes, be sure to sign up on iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.