U.S. Epidemic – Prescription Drug Abuse
“Approximately 6.1 million Americans abuse or misuse prescription drugs,” according to a 2013 published study. Many think automobile crashes are the culprit but overdoses are the leader of injury related deaths in the United States. As opioid prescriptions are escalating, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has classified prescription drug overdose as an epidemic in this country. Reports conclude that the misuse and abuse of prescription medications are on the rise and creating a huge public health problem for our nation. Treatment facilities, emergency room visits, overdose and deaths, place an enormous cost and burden to families, communities, U.S. health providers and the nation. Prescription drug laws, monitoring programs, policy and physician education all need to be overhauled in response to combat this growing national problem in order for drug abuse in the United States to decrease and for our current programs to be more effective.
Trust for America’s Health and The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Report
It is not just the homeless or mentally ill who suffer the trauma of addiction. Many legendary people who seem to “have it all” with money, power, fame and resources were unsuccessful in kicking the drug habit. The difference between celebrities and us is that they make the news when they overdose and die.
