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Opioid Epidemic Analysis

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The opioid epidemic was announced by President Donald Trump, as a national health emergency on July 2017. It is not a recent issue, but it is the deadliest drug crisis in American history. The overdose deaths have more than tripled since 1999 when it was surveyed in 2015, the numbers could be greater now. Although opioids come in different forms, they are most often used in pain killers that are prescribed from medical professionals. Examples of opioids are hydrocodone, fentanyl, oxycodone, morphine, and heroin. When an opioid is ingested it binds to the receptors in the body that controls a person's pain, doctors generally prescribe them to alleviate pain from accidents, surgeries, stressed muscles, etc. During World War II is where opioids …show more content…
According to Ciccarone (2017), deaths due to illicit drug overdose in the United States have reached historic proportions with annual numbers exceeding (p.107). Society has normalized pain killers and the users are not the first to be blamed. Doctors are taking the easy way out of helping patients by prescribing them a medication and getting them out of the office quick and easily. The patients essentially don’t want to hear the best advice of changing their habits of smoking, heavily drinking, poor diet, and lack of exercise because the results won’t be fast enough. People want to be healed as quickly as possible to return back to their work, family, school, and social life. The easiest and cheapest alternative to relieving chronic pain is the drugs but as soon as the body forms resistance to the prescription pain killers, stronger and higher doses are in demand and this is where fentanyl and heroin comes in. According to Ciccarone(2017), Fentanyl- and heroin-related overdose deaths increased 2011–2015 with the highest rates among 25–34 year-olds. Examining emergency department data, the number of rural heroin overdose visits exceeded those for opioid pill overdose for the first time in mid- 2016. This way of life is starting to affect younger generations, they are being exposed to pain killers at younger ages making the

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