There is no question, the opioid epidemic in the United States is both unprecedented and insidious; however, if there is a silver lining to be found it is that the crisis has forced an evolution to occur regarding how we, as a nation, both view and talk about addiction. For years, addiction experts have said that addiction does not discriminate – an assertion that was hard for many lawmakers to accept; however, in the wake of the scourge of opioid addiction affecting practically every demographic throughout the nation for well over a decade – we are now seeing a paradigm shift with how lawmakers believe we should handle this calamity.
It has become clear that we cannot arrest this epidemic away, as we tried to do during the 1980’s through the ‘90s with the cocaine problem in America. The use of draconian drug laws to combat addiction focused more on the symptoms of addiction and did little to address the disease of addiction. Addiction cannot be treated with steel bars, solutions can only be found with evidence-based, scientifically accepted methods of substance use disorder treatment. With 44 people dying from overdoses every day, there is a great need for expanded access to both the life saving opioid overdose reversal drug naloxone and to substance use disorder treatment services.
In recent months, there has been an inter-agency push to get those struggling with addiction the help they need without fear of prosecution. Overdose survivors do not need to fear be arrested, and are actually being directed to rehabilitation services. In fact, the President is asking Congress for $1.1 billion to expand access to addiction treatment services; in some places, addicts who would like help have to wait up to a month to get a bed at treatment centers.
While making treatment more available is huge and has the potential to save thousands of lives, there is also a need for more in the way of prevention through education. Recently, both the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) joined forces to make a film about the opioid epidemic – aimed at youth, The Washington Post reports. The goal is to prevent adolescents from abusing prescription opioids, which is strongly believed to be the link to beginning heroin use. The film: “Chasing the Dragon: The Life of an Opiate Addict” was produced at the insistence of James Comey, the current Director of the FBI.
“You will see in ‘Chasing the Dragon’ opioid abusers that have traveled a remarkably dangerous and self-destructive path,” said Acting DEA Administrator Chuck Rosenberg. “I hope this will be a wakeup call for folks. Please pay close attention to this horrific epidemic. Help reverse it. Save a life. Save a friend. Save a loved one.”
We hope that you will watch Chasing the Dragon below:
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