The Pros And Cons Of Regulating Drugs

I can’t count the number of prescriptions I get from the same doctor for the same medication same quantity on a daily basis. I feel that some doctors are simply writing scripts to make the patient happy when in reality their feeding the addiction. I have seen patients jump form pharmacy to pharmacy in order to fill multiple scripts for the same medication on the same day. There is a system that collects and keeps track of the what types of controlled and narcotic medications people received, however the system takes days to update, so it almost impossible to know right away when the last time a patient received a particular opioid medication. Another issue that I believe is feeding the addiction for drugs abusers is the sale of needles. Depending on the state, people who do not have a prescription for needles or a medication that requires the use of needles, can simply walk into a pharmacy and buy a box of needles. Anyone with commons sense would see that if you don’t have a prescription that requires needles your most likely using it for illegal reasons. Pharmacy regulations make it to easy for people to get what they need in order to “get

Prescription drug use has increased steadily in the U.S. over the last ten years. Nearly 70 percent of Americans are on at least one prescription drug and more than half of those receive at least two or more prescriptions. The amount of people who took at least one prescription drugs has accelerated 4 percent between the years 1999 and 2008. As there is a steady increase in drug consumption, drug development and regulation process should be taken more

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.

The rate of death due to prescription drug abuse in the U.S. has escalated 313 percent over the past decade. According to the Congressional Quarterly Transcription’s article "Rep. Joe Pitt Holds a Hearing on Prescription Drug Abuse," opioid prescription drugs were involved in 16,650 overdose-caused deaths in 2010, accounting for more deaths than from overdoses of heroin and cocaine. Prescribed drugs or painkillers sometimes "condemn a patient to lifelong addiction," according to Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This problem not only affects the lives of those who overdose but it affects the communities as well due to the convenience of being able to find these items in drug stores and such.

Many people have developed an addiction due to an injury and which were prescribed painkillers to manage and treat the pain. Prolonged use leads to dependence and once a person is addicted, increasing amounts of drugs are required to prevent feeling of withdrawal. Addiction to painkillers often leads to harder drugs such as heroin due to the black market drug being cheaper. Prescription drugs remain a far deadlier problem and more people abuse prescription medication than cocaine, methamphetamine heroin, MDMA and PCP combined. Drug abuse is ending too many lives too soon and destroying families and communities.

The twenty-first century has seen pharmaceutical companies grow in unprecedented size and strength. Due to the unprecedented growth the larger pharmaceutical companies have gained leverage and power in the prescription drug industry, but they lack innovation to market and they seek ways to help the business continue to increase its profits. The pharmaceutical industry was once ethically sound and was a valuable player in the development of human health. However, overtime with the lack of innovation pharmaceutical companies are becoming an unethical market that exploits patients, doctors and anyone else it can to increase its profitability. With eyes only on profitability this can create a hazard for patients because there

Would you believe me if I tell you that the number of deaths related to prescription drugs abuse has surpassed the number of deaths related to car accidents? In 2009, according to statistics from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drug abuses accounted for at least 37,485 of deaths in America, doubling the number in the last decade. While most of these deaths are due to the abuse of opioid painkillers, excessive use of antidepressants and antibiotics have also led to many problems. Furthermore, overprescribing by doctors have contributed a huge part in promoting these deaths.

Addiction is happening due to the addictive property of the drug, opiates attach to the body’s receptors that reduce the perception of pain. Although, the addiction must start somewhere, and it typically begins with a prescription written by a doctor. Over prescription and greedy drug companies are believed

In 1995, the FDA approved a miracle drug, which would aid in a person's ability to cope with the severe pain associated with cancer. Purdue Pharma L.P. of Stamford, Connecticut, introduced the wonder drug that would eventually be the demise of many. Oxycotin would, for several, lead to addiction, criminal behaviors, and, for some, their lives. The intent of releasing the drug was solely to treat patients suffering from chronic pain. Since the release of the drug, doctors are now prescribing the medicine for moderate pain as well. Patients have become extremely addicted and have gone to extreme lengths to obtain the "poor man's heroin," which may include criminal activities. Recovering addicts endure an

In the same country where someone dies from accidental prescription drug overdose every 19 minutes, one must ask what is being done by the FDA to stop this. The answer to this is quite simple. Nothing. In the past thirty years, approximately 90% of all the new drugs approved by the FDA have had little to no advantages over existing drugs on the

Prescription pain medications are supposed to improve the health and well-being of an individual. Oxycontin, an opioid drug, is meant to help people manage their pain symptoms; however, many people are unaware that there is a danger of abuse of receiving drugs prescribed by their physicians. The essays “How to Create an Addiction” and “Erin Daly: OxyWatchdog” by Cynthia Andrzejczyk explore the problem of prescription drugs in the United States. Since 1999, prescription drug epidemic in the United States has been killing 15,000 people every year from overdosing (Andrzejczyk 275). People have been losing their loved ones due to a culprit meant to help. The Pharma Purdue company who created the Oxycontin was responsible for starting the

Medicine has been around for thousands of years and has diversified and given us many options to treat illness or pain. Some are available as over-the-counter drugs that can be purchased almost anywhere and others require you to get a prescription from your doctor in order to get it. Some of these drugs that require a prescription often help people who deal with chronic pain, those who are at the end of their life, or cancer patients. Unfortunately these drugs, although helpful to those who need them, are being abused by millions of Americans every year. With doctors prescribing ludicrous amounts of prescription drug, sometimes when it is not even necessary, and our lack of knowledge on the subject, prescription drug abuse has become a big

Pharmaceutical companies are all over this world, constantly showing how corrupt the industry is becoming and creating new data, and new advertisements, but what are these new pieces of data and advertisements? What are they saying? Prescription drug abuse has become a major health epidemic because of the increase use of prescribed drugs on college campuses, pharmaceutical companies misleading doctors and patients, and illegal trafficking.

Often times patients will walk into a doctor’s office with a complaint for pain and quickly assume that the professional will prescribe something that will quickly treat the pain: an opioid painkiller. Instead of attempting to resolve the initial problem with alternative types of treatment (physical therapy, exercise, sleep, etc.), they are expecting medications for an easy, temporary fix. Doctors are seemingly failing to see any type of correlation in these frequent and popular mishaps. Medical Doctors should most definitely be required to take specific training courses on opioids, and they should have specific guides to follow in order to prescribe opioids Background checks for patients should also be required before patients are given painkiller prescriptions. It would be very beneficial for doctors to learn more information about their patients before prescribing them opioids for pain. “In fact, prescription drugs cause most of the more than 26,000 fatal overdoses each year Leonard Paulozzi of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC]” (Szabo, 2013). Many professionals have been on top of this issue and performing mass amounts of research because of the huge incline in the death rates of citizens. This information demonstrates that the opioid and

Drug legalization is one of the hottest topics in the world today. Drug has both of advantages and disadvantages for human, for society, or even for a country. It is common to see different views held by people. Some people support drug legalization but others opposes that. This essay will argue that drug should not be legalized because although they are relaxing, there are also harmful for one’s health and can have a bad influence.