America's Problem With Prescription Pain Pills

THE US IS IN LOVE WITH Prescription Opiates A STARTLING LOOK AT THE NUMBERS According to a report by IMS, the second most widely prescribed drug in the US in 2014 was the painkiller Hydrocodone. You probably know it by the brand names it goes under, like Lortab or Vicodin. VICODIN In total, 119 million prescriptions were written for this addictive opioid in 2014. Hydrocodone, which is commonly combined with Acetaminophen, works relieving pain through the central nervous system. While it is used legitimately by millions of patients nationwide, it also represents America's growing problem with prescription pain pills.. The US no w consumes 80% of all prescribed opiates worldwide. 80% That's approximately 15.5 pounds per 10,000 people. APPROXIMATELY 5 MILLION PEOPLE in the US take opiates for non-medical use on a regular basis, and over 7 million people have taken prescription painkillers for non-medical use over the past 30 days! DEATH BY DRUGS In 2013, more than 46,000 PEOPLE died from a drug overdose. That's more people than who died from Car accidents And from guns 32,719 11,419 More than half those deaths That's one were from an overdose of prescription drugs. death every 22 minutes! Since 2000, prescription opiate overdoses have doubled among men and quadrupled among women. In 1999 Opioid analgesics like oxycodone, hydrocodone, and methadone contributed to just 4,030 DEATHS. Вy 2010 Opioid analgesics "were involved in about 3 of every 4 pharmaceutical overdose deaths" and responsible for 16,651 TOTAL DEATHS THAT YEAR. PHARMACY + It's no coincidence that during this time, from 1999 to 2010, the sale of prescription painkillers to pharmacies and doctors' offices quadrupled. 4x Leading growth in opioid usage is the powerful painkiller Oxycontin, which by 2010 accounted for 30% of the painkiller market. 30% AND IT'S A BIG MARKET! The US consumes 80% of prescribed painkillers worldwide, and prescription opiates accounted for $11 billion in revenue for the pharmaceutical industry in 2011. Recently, tighter restrictions on opiate painkillers have led to a sharp rise in heroin abuse. An estimated 4 out of 5 heroin addicts begin their opiate use with pain medications. OXY HEROIN oc = On 80 milligram pill of Oxycontin costs roughly $30 on the street. Why buy one measly "Oxy" when you can get 6 full doses of heroin for the same price? IT'S A DANGEROUS GAME TO PLAY INDEED... AND RIGHT NOW THE U.S. IS LOSING. SOURCES withdrawal ease http://www.dea.gov/divisions/hq/2015/hq110415.shtml http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/812101.pdf http://guns.periscopic.com/?year=2013 http://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2013/p0220_drug_overdose_deaths.html https://theweek.com/articles/541564/how-american-opiate-epidemic-started-by-pharmaceutical-company http://www.wbur.org/2015/04/28/state-2014-overdose-deaths http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/WDR2011/World_Drug_Report_2011_ebook.pdf https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/treatment-statistics