Opioid Conflict Theory

The Opioid Crisis is affecting society as a whole. It is touching all people regardless of race, religion, income, geographic location, or education. While there are effective treatments for opioid addiction, the level of treatment for all those affected is not equal. Many addicts cannot afford the proper treatment needed to overcome this addiction, and find themselves sick, unemployed, homeless, dead, or in jail. Conflict Theory is clearly displayed in the Opioid Crisis, pointing out that when resources are not distributed evenly among citizens, it causes conflict. This in turn results in a need for a change. In response to this need was the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016 (CARA). This essay will address unequal treatment

Effective treatment for opioid addiction is very expensive, even for those with private health insurance, making access to treatment unequally distributed across the country. The nature of addiction itself makes it highly unlikely that the addict will have any income or insurance at all, leaving them with little to no options. By the time the addict seeks treatment they are often unemployed, homeless, sick, and/or in jail. Even the middle class find it difficult to afford treatment because the deductibles are so high and must be paid up front. In addition to the cost, patients often have to travel out of state to find a facility that is reputable, and it is often difficult to determine the quality of the program site

The CARA Act was designed to address many of the different dynamics of the Opioid Crisis by allocating funding to address them. It plans to limit opioid prescriptions, as well as to address treatment issues such as prevention education and proper pain management. Additional provider training will be offered in an attempt to extend treatment allowing nurse practitioners and physician assistants to provide buprenorphine treatment. In addition, it will fund more treatment programs, making the facilities more accessible from people’s homes. Funding will also be allocated to make Narcan more accessible. While the CARA Act does address many of the issues surrounding the Opioid Crisis, it fails to address that most treatment centers do not accept Medicaid and the ones that do have a very low success rates. This is where the premise of the Conflict Theory is truly displayed; the inadequate treatment provided to those of lower economic status. The buprenorphine treatment centers are an excellent example of the lower quality of care received by lower income individuals. These programs require addicts to come into the clinic a minimum of 5 days a week to start often for 2 hours or more per day, just to receive two days of their prescribed medication. Compliance to the program eventually reduces the number of times they are required to come in each week, however there compliance is often