The office of Attorney General Mike Hunter issued a press release January 11 announcing that the state of Oklahoma is the first state in the nation to schedule a trial for opioid litigation against the nations leading opioid manufacturers in an attempt to combat the growing abuse crisis. Though the manufacturers had attempted to extended the process Judge Thad Balkman dismissed the initial requests for a dismissal and subsequent attempt to draw out the process in december of 2017 setting the trial date for May 2019. Oklahoma is not the only state filing for a lawsuit against these companies though, states such as Mississippi and Missouri are among those who have also filed for subpoenas and lawsuits stating that the marketing used by the companies …show more content…
" People think that just because a Doctor gives you a prescription its ok but its still an addictive and dangerous drug. Most people when they hear opioids they automatically assume its meth." He said that withdrawal symptoms for prescription opioids can be more violent for those going though withdrawal and even make the abuser more violent than meth. "Once they get stated using and begin to abuse the prescription they may have to take 3 - 4 pills daily to keep from going into withdrawal and even more than that if they want to get high off of them." "When some one who has been abusing an opioid like Xanax, Oxycodone, Hydrocodone, or Dilaudid, and get off them often times if they try to start taking them again they don't realize they cant take as much as they used to and take what they were taking before and thats lead to a lot of overdoses." he said. Jody Clubb says he increasingly concerned with the rise of young people that get prescribed these pills, that the amount of opioid abuse is steadily over taking the usage of meth and many of the recent over doses are in the younger
On the typical day, over 90 people will die at the hand of opioid abuse in America alone (National). In fact, as of 2014, nearly 2 million Americans were dependent and abusing opioids. The Opioid Crisis has affected America and its citizens in various ways, including health policy, health care, and the life in populous areas. Due to the mass dependence and mortality, the crisis has become an issue that must be resolved in all aspects.
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 abuse is founded greater in the prescription opiate based painkillers.
Two effects of meth addiction are an increase in property crimes and an increase in the number of children entering foster career. Shockingly, half of the inmates in Portland jails were meth users, and meth addicts commit 80% of the property crimes in Oregon. These statistics show how meth can not only negatively affect an individual and a family, but a whole community. The correlation between property crimes and meth can be explained by the fact that meth is an ultra-stimulant. According to the video, one puff can an individual stay high for even a whole day. As a result, the person’s dependency leads them to do things or commit crimes they would not have done otherwise
Opioids are used as pain relievers and although it does the job, there are adverse side effects. Opioids are frequently used in the medical field, allowing doctors to overprescribe their patients. The substance can be very addicting to the dosage being prescribed to the patient. Doctors are commonly prescribing opioids for patients who have mild, moderate, and severe pain. As the pain becomes more severe for the patient, the doctor is more likely to increase the dosage. The increasing dosages of the narcotics become highly addicting. Opioids should not be prescribed as pain killers, due to their highly addictive chemical composition, the detrimental effects on opioid dependent patients, the body, and on future adolescents. Frequently doctors have become carless which causes an upsurge of opioids being overprescribed.
Opioid overdose is currently the most common cause of accidental death in Canada and the U.S. The opioid crisis is having a devastating effect on communities across Canada, taking its toll on opioid users as well as their friends and families.
According to CDC in the year 2015 opioids played a part in 33,091 deaths. Now you may ask what an opioid is. An Opioid is a compound that binds to opioid receptors in the body to reduce the amount of pain. There are four main categories of opioids, one being natural opioid analgesics including morphine and codeine, and semi synthetic opioid analgesics, including oxycodone, hydrocodone, hydromorphone, and oxymorphone. The second category being methadone, a synthetic opioid, the third category being synthetic opioid analgesics other than methadone includes tramadol and fentanyl. The last category is an illicit opioid that is synthesized from morphine called heroin.
In the United States, opioid addiction rates have majorly increased . Between 2000-2015 more than half a million individuals have died from Opioid overdose, and nearly 5 million people have an opioid dependence which has become a serious problem. The Center for Disease control reports that there are 91 deaths daily due to opioid abuse. Taking opioids for long periods of time and in
Clearly, his study shows that prescription drug abuse among teens has risen a lot, and is becoming a bigger problem than it once was. In fact, each day, over 1,000 teenagers start abusing prescription medication (3). Although personally I have not met anyone who has ever abused prescription drugs, the problem is prevalent and should not be ignored.
Every year, 2.6 million people in the United States suffer from opioid abuse and of that 2.6 million, 276,000 are adolescents, and this problem is only escalating. An individual’s physical and emotional health suffer as well as their personal lives as they lose employment, friends, family, and hope. Opioid addiction begins with the addictive aspects of the drug. People easily become hooked on the relieving effects of the opioids and suffer withdrawal symptoms if they stop using the drug completely because their nerve cells become accustomed to the drug and have difficulty functioning without it; yet the addiction to the drug is only one aspect to the complex problem. The stigma about opioid addiction has wide-reaching negative effects as it
Another growing fad in the United States is the abuse of prescription drugs. The abuse is being done by not only adults but by teens. The most current trend today is the misuse of cough syrups and prescription medications to produce a “high.” Other medications abused today are stimulants (Ritalin), and benzodiazepines (Xanax). Health Watch (2004) state girls tend to lean towards the medi...
Stat also says that using opioids for just FIVE days can end up as long-term dependence, and classifies this as a disease, because it alters brain biology and produces withdrawal symptoms such as aches and pains, nausea, and tremors.
Huemer discusses the governments abilities to limit individual’s freedoms by making drugs illegal. The first argument concludes that the government should prohibit drug use because the government should prevent people from doing things that harm themselves, and drug use is harmful to users. The problem with this argument is that the government does not prohibit everything that harms user. We have the choice to have unprotected sex, to smoke tobacco, eat too much, etc., therefore we should have the choice to decide if we want to use drugs. However, Huemer wants to show that these other examples are different from allowing drug use. He does this by considering three options: drug use harms other people besides the user, drug use is more harmful then these other activities, and drug use harms in a different way than those other activities.
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. Not to mention the fact that the doctors who prescribe these opioids often tend to misuse them as well. Abusing these prescribed drugs can “destroy dreams and abort great destinies," and end the possibility of the abuser to have a positive impact in the community.
Drugs are a big problem in today's society, and one question everyone asks are should some drugs be legal while others are illegal. Dictionary of legal terms states that “drugs are chemicals that have a dramatic effect upon a living organism by altering one or more body organs”. A Lot of drugs are used to help people. Most drugs are considered medication that is prescribed by the doctor to ease pain or kill a virus.
Meyer, K 30725003 ENLS111 Morris, M Longer Essay: All drugs should be legalised for use in private homes The ‘war on drugs’ has been a never-ending battle that the prohibition of substances have been unable to conquer. Although it is unsuccessful, the aim of drug prohibition is to minimize the harm caused by drugs. Despite the controversial nature of this topic, the decriminalization of all drugs for use in private homes could possibly be a solution to this problem. The prohibition of drugs by the government does not correspond with a free-community and interferes with the liberties of the individual.