New Jersey declares “epidemic” of prescription medication addiction, fueling an unprecedented number of overdose deaths and deaths related to addiction. Over half of 843 deaths in the state were caused by prescription medicine misuse. Here we’ve crowned Oxycontin the King of prescription painkillers. Opioids are “legal heroin” that many claim are responsible for the rise in prescription drug addiction and heroin use in the United States.
Regulators and health researchers in the State of New Jersey have sounded the alarm for a prescription medication “epidemic” in the state. People in New Jersey are hooked on prescription medications, and dying in alarming numbers.
Two years ago the investigators published a study showing a steady rise in prescription pain killer use in New Jersey, as well as an increase in heroin trade and use. The heroin rise, many concluded, was caused by the lethal combination of increased scrutiny of prescription drug distribution, plus soaring demand due to increase popularity of opiate and opioid painkillers as prescribed medications. Now, New Jerseyans are increasingly hooked on opioids like oxycodone and hydrodocone.
Opioids are manufactured (man-made or synthetic) versions of opiates, which are derived from the poppy plant. Prior to the commercialization of today’s powerful opioid painkillers, heroin and morphine were the common opiates. Heroin was a highly illegal “Schedule I” narcotic, known to be one of the most addicting substances on the streets. Morphine was highly regulated, and used only for extreme conditions, such as cases of extreme pain likely leading to death (terminal illness).
With the advent of Oxycontin and various formulations of synthetic opioids (oxycodone, hydrocodone, roxycodone, codeine, etc), the “heroin high” could be obtained using legal, prescription painkillers. To say that another way, patients following the advice of prescribing doctors started to get heroin highs from their prescribed pain killers. They also became addicted.
Until recently, many were reluctant to openly state that prescription medications were “addicting” or that pain killers like Oxycontin were the manufactured equivalent of heroin. Still today, many addicted to prescription opioids do not consider themselves “drug addicts”, even when they find themselves seeking illegal sources for the drugs, because they have exceeded the supply available from the doctor or have otherwise “outgrown” their prescriptions.
Prescription pain killer withdrawal symptoms are similar if not equivalent to heroin withdrawal symptoms, making a prescription pain meds addiction just as serious an addiction as a heroin addiction. In fact, to the professionals helping people regain control of themselves (drug detox professionals), there is no difference:
In this latest report for New Jersey, the numbers are staggering: over half the the nearly 850 drug overdose deaths reported in New Jersey were attributed to prescription medications. This time, medical doctors were not only blamed for playing a significant role by casually prescribing powerful painkillers, but they were accused of engaging in fraud and functioning as “outright drug dealers”.
Read the full report via the link below.
Resources:
- “Scenes from an Epidemic” report (PDF)
- John Moriarty NJ Detox Blog
- New Jersey forms new DMHAS
New Jersey has waited far to long to finally step up and do something about addiction to prescription. Why didn’t NJ do something sooner. First thing was to go after the Doctors who have over prescribed OxyContin, oxycodone and the famous percocets. Those doctors should be made to see that all his or her patients are giving rehab at the doctors expense. Nobody is reporting about the prescription pad junkies. I am talking legal large quanties that doctors are prescribing, pharmacys are dispensing and insurance companys are picking up the tab. It’s time for the board of medical examiners to turn the doctors in to the prosecutor’s office when they know that they broke the law. Punishment from the medical board is unjust. These doctors should appear in front of a judge a jury then justice will be served one would hope. A lot of the drugs out there are coming from these legal scripts that are written by some doctors. Read the medical boards website and you will be amazed that so many doctors commit the crime but don’t do the time nor do they loose their licenses. this topic is painful for me and one thing I am often reminded of is that death is final there is no just one more time, it’s over.