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THE OPIOID EPIDEMIC IN THE UNITED STATES
GUEST EDITORIAL
The United States is in the throes of an opioid epidemic, which has led to the deaths of thousands of its citizens, mostly teenagers. Today, more than four million Americans have become dependent on opioids as pain relievers, and even though opioids can be deadly if misused, many have abused and overdosed on the drugs.
Opioids are drugs that act on the nervous system to relieve pain. They lower the number of pain signals the body sends to the brain. They also change how the brain responds to pain. Opioids are usually safe when used correctly, as prescribed by a doctor. In the US, almost 30 percent of all patients prescribed opioids for chronic pain have misused them.
The opioid Fentanyl, a synthetic painkiller is said to be 25-50 times stronger than heroin, and 50-100 times more powerful than morphine. Just a small dose can be deadly. Opioids are naturally derived from opium which are poppy plants commonly grown in Asia, Central America and South America. Other opiate medications include Oxycodone and Hydrocodone.
Opioids release the hormone known as dopamine that produces euphoria or a “high”. Regular use, even as prescribed by a doctor, can lead to dependence.
According to the US National Institute on Drug Abuse, in 2015, between 28 and 38 million people worldwide between the ages of 15 and 65 misused opioids. During the same period, an estimated 4 million people in the United States have used opioids recreationally and became addicted to them. Of that amount, 63,600 have died from opioid overdose of which 75 percent were teens in that year. It means that in 2015, an average of 115 people died from opioid overdose each day in the US.
In the last two years, there has been a dramatic rise in the misuse of opioids and opioid overdose deaths in the US. Americans have become so dependent on opioids that 49 states have implemented prescription drug monitoring program databases to enable healthcare providers to prevent patients from obtaining opioid prescriptions from multiple physicians. Data from the IMS Health Firm show that in the last five years, it cost US taxpayers an estimated $78.5 billion to treat opioid users who overdosed and became addicted to the drugs.
The opioid epidemic has become so serious in the US that President Trump declared a national public health emergency to combat the crisis. Trump also established a Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis, and has directed his administration to use all appropriate authority to respond to the emergency.
Acting on the request of the President, several pharmaceutical chains in the United States, including the two largest—CVS and Walgreens—have implemented new restrictions to limit public access to the drug. They have also developed a brochure to educate the public on the dangers of misusing opioids.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions has launched an Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit to fight the growing epidemic and to prosecute individuals who commit opioid-related health care fraud. Several State legislatures have also introduced measures to limit the quantity of opioids that doctors can dispense to patients. The goal is for Americans, especially youths, to learn about the dangers of misusing opioids and how to avoid using the drug altogether.
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