Opioid epidemic in the United States
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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The opioid epidemic (aka opioid crisis) refers to the extensive overuse of opioid drugs, both from medical prescriptions and from illegal sources. The epidemic began slowly in the United States, beginning in the late 1990s, and led to a massive increase in opioid use in recent years, contributing to over 70,000 drug overdose deaths in the U.S. in 2018.
Opioids are a diverse class of moderately strong, addictive, inexpensive painkillers prescribed by doctors. These, along with a much stronger synthetic opioid, fentanyl, have made them popular as medical treatments after surgery. With heroin, an illegal street opioid, they have become recreational drugs, despite the high risk of addiction and overdose. The opioid epidemic has been described as a uniquely American problem, where prescription rates alone are 40 percent higher than in other developed countries, such as Canada and Germany. This has made it one of the worst drug crises in American history, causing more deaths annually than car crashes or guns, and leaving many children orphaned. As a result, the government began cracking down on pharmacists and doctors who were over-prescribing opioid painkillers.
Those addicted to opioids, both legal and illegal, are increasingly young, white, and female, with 1.2 million women addicted compared to 0.9 million men in 2015. The populations of rural areas of the country have been the hardest hit. Teen abuse of opioids has been noticeably increasing since 2006, using prescription drugs more than any illicit drug except marijuana; more than cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine combined. The crisis has also changed moral, social, and cultural resistance to street drug alternatives such as heroin.
In 2011, the administration began to deal with the crisis, and in 2016, President Barack Obama authorized millions of dollars in funding for opioid research and treatment, followed by CDC director, Dr. Thomas Frieden, stating that "America is awash in opioids; urgent action is critical." Soon after, many state governors declared a "state of emergency" to combat the opioid epidemic in their own states, and undertook major efforts to stop it. In July 2017, opioid addiction was cited as the "FDA's biggest crisis", followed by President Donald Trump declaring the opioid crisis a "national emergency." In September 2019, he ordered U.S. mail carriers to block shipments of the most powerful and dangerous opioid, fentanyl, coming from other countries.
See also
- Diseases of despair – including opioid overdose
- Johnson & Johnson
- Opium in Iran, world's highest per capita rate of opiate addiction
- List of deaths from drug overdose and intoxication
- List of countries by prevalence of opiates use
- Teva Pharmaceutical Industries
- Sackler family
