Hi Reader,

So far this year, more than 30,000 individuals have made a donation to help pay for the critical journalism we are publishing every day. The kind of investigative work we do is expensive and time consuming. But our mission is to create change by shining a sustained spotlight on the injustices our work exposes. Often, we see that change.

Last year, a ProPublica investigation found that business consulting giant McKinsey & Company was simultaneously working for the Food and Drug Administration and opioid makers such as Purdue Pharma and Johnson & Johnson. For the FDA, McKinsey advised the agency on revamping drug-approval processes and implementing new tools for monitoring the pharmaceutical industry. For their pharmaceutical clients, McKinsey helped them fend off costly FDA oversight. The company also helped Purdue Pharma shape its OxyContin sales message to overcome concerns about addiction and overdoses. It has since come out that almost two dozen McKinsey employees worked for both the FDA and opioid makers on overlapping topics. McKinsey never disclosed this conflict of interest to the government and has insisted that it was under no obligation to do so.

After our investigation was published, Congress introduced a bill that takes aim at the risk of improper influence when government contractors work for both federal agencies and private-sector clients. It makes several changes to federal contracting rules, including provisions requiring contractors to disclose information about potential conflicts of interest. That bill finally passed this month, and President Joe Biden is expected to sign it.

We’ll never stop shining a light on abuses of power and breaches of public trust in an effort to hold people in power accountable. Thanks to donations from folks like you, we’re growing larger, getting stronger and having more impact than ever before.

Give today, and help ProPublica ensure that we continue to have the resources to follow the most important stories wherever they lead and for however long it takes.

Thanks so much,
Jill Shepherd
Fellow ProPublican