Prescription Pain Medications Are Supposed To Improve The

In America, the use of opioids is at an all time high, it has became such an issue nationwide, that it has became an epidemic. Because of the opioid epidemic, America is tearing apart, children all across the country are dying everyday, these children are dying from overdoses due to poisoning. The opioid problem is not just because of a person's decision to pick up a needle or a pill bottle, but it is because in the 1990’s doctors gave up on trying to treat patients for their overwhelming pain and discomfort, causing opioids to become over prescribed. Due to the carelessness of America, opioids are being distributed more and more everyday, causing the skyrocketing number of deaths.

Over the past two decades, pharmaceutical companies have quietly invaded American’s homes by introducing new miracle drugs such as OxyContin into their daily lives. Purdue Pharmaceuticals introduced OxyContin saying it was a miracle cure for pain that would last twelve hours. However, “even when doctors began reporting that patients were complaining

Opioids are taking over the United States with its addictive composition, once patients are take opioids there is no escaping. The drug directed from opium which is obtained from a plant (Katz). Opioids are most commonly found in prescription pill from making underground sales more common. Since opioids are derived from a plant this makes the reality of home grown drugs more of an issue. American citizens overdosing on opioids is what is sparking the crisis because opioid “overdoses killed more people last year than guns or car accidents” (Katz). Opioids are extremely addictive and that is why so many citizens overdose on these types of drugs. After patients become hooked on opioids their body constantly is needing more and more opium to escape they pain they think they are enduring. The overdosing of Americans is not a small percentage of the population either, it is estimated that “over two million people in America have problem with opioids” proving this growing issue is an ongoing crisis (Katz). The United States government needs to take action immediately to the opioid crisis because doctors are overprescribing patients because they seemingly overreact to pain, and opioids are one of the most addictive drug types in the world.

In Nolan and Amico’s article, “How Bad is the Opioid Epidemic?” they argue the opioid epidemic has become the worst drug crisis in American history. Heroin and other opioids overdose kill more than 47,055 people a year. Deaths caused from drug overdose has outnumber as much as 40 percent compared to the death caused from car crashes in 2014 (Nolan and Amico 3). Furthermore, in 1999 there were only 15000 people died from drug overdose. This number has tripled in 15 years. Also, in his article, “America’s Addiction to Opioids: Heroin and Prescription Drug Abuse” Volkow also presents the fact that “with an estimated 2.1 million people in the United States suffering from substance use disorders related to prescription opioid pain relievers in 2012 and an estimated 467,000 addicted to heroin. The consequences of this abuse have been devastating and are on the rise. For example, the number of unintentional overdose deaths from prescription pain relievers has

The United States of America has had a war against drugs since the 37th president, Richard Nixon, declared more crimination on drug abuse in June 1971. From mid-1990s to today, a crisis challenges the health department and government on opioid regulation, as millions of Americans die due overdoses of painkillers. Opioids are substances used as painkillers, and they range from prescription medications to the illegal drug, heroin. Abusing these substances can cause a dependency or addiction, which can lead to overdoses, physical damages, emotional trauma, and death. To ease the crisis, physicians are asked to depend on alternatives to pain management. Law enforcement cracks down on profiting drug-dealers and heroin abusers. People are warned against misusing opioids. The controversy begins for those who suffer from chronic pain, because they depend on opioids. There’s so a correlation to the 1980s cocaine epidemic, and people are upset over racial discrimination. Nonetheless, the best way to avoid this crisis is to recover the people at risk, reduce inappropriate opioid description, and have a proper response.

Unfortunately, the producers of Purdue Pharma’s Oxycontin didn’t realize how easy it was to break that outer shell, and have instant access to twelve hours worth of drugs. This realization by the public, caused a devastating and widespread increase in addition to the drug, and the transition to the drug seen as a “street” drug. Unlike many other types of medications where you can be prescribed a dosage and stay on that dosage for a long time. "Your body adapts to Oxycontin. Essentially, you require more to get the same effect, and what happens is a steady escalation in dosage. After a year or two of treatment, you are on extremely high levels of these drugs (Tunnel, 2005)". Oxycontin transitioned from a lifeline for people with chronic pain, to an addiction caused by a greedy corporation.

In the early 1990’s many doctors were hesitant in prescribing narcotics because they were seen as harmful and habit forming. Purdue Pharma the creator of OxyContin changed the ways of the drug industry. Purdue changed the mindset of many physicians and family doctors inconveniencing them that the new to the market drug was revolutionary, with promises of quick pain relief that last up to 12 hours. With marketing adds like “Remember, effective relief just takes two” Purdue Pharma convinced doctors that it was virtually impossible to become addicted (HARRIET RYAN, 2016). The rise of OxyContin started in 1996. OxyContin

The United States currently faces an unprecedented epidemic of opioid addiction. This includes painkillers, heroin, and other drugs made from the same base chemical. In the couple of years, approximately one out of twenty Americans reported misuse or abuse of prescriptions painkillers. Heroin abuse and overdoses are on the rise and are the leading cause of injury deaths, surpassing car accidents and gun shots. The current problem differs from the opioid addiction outbreaks of the past in that it is also predominant in the middle and affluent classes. Ultimately, anyone can be fighting a battle with addiction and it is important for family members and loved ones to know the signs. The cause for this epidemic is that the current spike of opioid abuse can be traced to two decades of increased prescription rates for painkillers by well-meaning physicians.

Almost one hundred years ago, prescription drugs like morphine were available at almost any general store. Women carried bottles of very addictive potent opiate based pain killers in their purse. Many individuals like Edgar Allen Poe died from such addictions. Since that time through various federal, state and local laws, drugs like morphine are now prescription drugs; however, this has not stopped the addiction to opiate based pain killers. Today’s society combats an ever increasing number of very deadly addictive drugs from designer drugs to narcotics to the less potent but equally destructive alcohol and marijuana. With all of these new and old drugs going in and out of vogue with addicts, it appears that the increase of misuse and

Here in America, there is an ongoing tragedy ceaselessly unfolding right before our eyes. Beyond the calamities of gun violence, the loss of innocent lives through ruthless crimes and deadly motor vehicle accidents, there is a crisis occurring in the very homes of many Americans. There is a proceeding addiction to the pill bottles hidden behind bathroom mirrors, needles poking through the surface of fragile skin to get a “fix”, and prescriptions being written left and right with the intention to help but the potential to kill. Here in America, over 115 people die every single day from overdosing on opioids and this is a reality that has been nothing short of deadly since as early as 1990.

The documentary points to a company called Pharma Purdue, which seemed to have caused a momentum in drug addictions and deaths, after releasing a drug called Oxycontin (Oxycodone). Originally it was pushed as a pain medication, supposedly not as addictive as other pain medications. "Oxycontin was not really a new drug. The molecule has been around since 1916. What they did is, they took this old extinct drug, and they introduced a time release mechanism into it so that it would be significantly less addictive because it wouldn 't be released upfront, all at once. That’s how they pitched it to the FDA" (Katherine Eban, Fortune).

OxyContin is a controlled drug containing oxycodone, the active ingredient responsible for eliminating the pain associated with: injuries, bursitis, dislocation, fractures, neuralgia, arthritis, lower back pain, and pain associated with cancer. When taken according to the proper dosage, the oxycodone runs on a perfectly timed release in the body’s system in order to manage the pain. This narcotic, when abused, produces heroin like effects and can enable the user to develop a tolerance, forcing an increase in dosage per intake in order to achieve the desired effects. Though OxyContin is

    There has been an increase in heroin and opioid abuse in america. It has been affecting everyone and the incoming generation greatly. The use of pain reliever drugs is often the leading cause to abusing opioids and/or heroin. These pain relievers are often addictive and once people are addicted and cut off from them they begin searching for other ways to satisfy their cravings. The prescription drugs are often easily dispensed to people so it’s easier to access. This easy access makes it easier for people to get a prescription, leading to a higher risk of addiction.

Despite common knowledge that with extended use, opioids result in tolerance and addiction; the healthcare community quickly adopted the practice. At the same time, patient advocacy and pain management groups lobbied to loosen opioid prescribing restrictions (Manchikanti et al.). Concurrently, an initiative to identify pain as “the 5th vital sign” immerged to stronger prioritize pain management (Alexander, Kruszewski, & Webster, 2012). Spurred initially by an American pain organization, later found to be funded by the pharmaceutical manufacturer of OxyContin, this initiative was also quickly adopted by the medical community, and other medical and government organizations. Medical practitioners became the target for big pharma’s marketing strategies to further their profits, and they fell prey. Opioid medications are now commonplace in medicine cabinets across the U.S., benefiting the pharmaceutical companies to the tune of 10 billion dollars

There is an epidemic plaguing our nation, a plague that does not discriminate between young, or old, rich or poor, the plague is the addiction to Oxycontin. A prescription narcotic first introduced 1996 by the Purdue Pharmaceutical Company ("The Promotion and Marketing of Oxycontin: Commercial Triumph, Public Health Tragedy). The drug Oxycontin was quickly marketed, and aggressively promoted. The pharmaceutical corporation in 1996 made $48 million dollars and in the year 2000 that sum was about 1.1 billion dollars ("The Promotion and Marketing of Oxycontin: Commercial Triumph, Public Health Tragedy). The miracle medication was intended for cancer patients whose pain level was not controlled with regular opioid medications ("The Promotion