Opioid Drugs Essay

According to the Center for Disease Control, “opioid-related overdose deaths now outnumber overdose deaths involving all illicit drugs such as heroin and cocaine combined.” Another study found that people who have access to medical marijuana are less at risk of developing painkiller abuse or dying from prescription drug overdoses. Prescription painkiller abuse and overdose is a rapidly-growing problem in America, and the signs are pointing to medical marijuana as a solution. Statistics show that about 53% of people who become addicted to opioid painkillers obtained them free from a friend or relative. The only way to stop this is to stop prescribing opioid-based narcotics. Opioid-related prescription abuse and overdose cannot be prevented if painkillers such as OxyContin and Vicodin are still available for those suffering from chronic pain. A study recently published in the Journal of the American Medical

It can no longer be ignored that medical marijuana could very well be the best way to treat chronic pain in suffering individuals. Cannabis is lower-risk as opposed to opioid painkillers, as it is much less addictive (or not at all addictive) and would potentially never lead to overdose deaths. Statistics from the CDC show that those who take Rx opioid painkillers are forty times more likely to be addicted to heroin, as opposed to just three times more likely with marijuana use. Many drug abuse prevention and intervention methods are already in place, such as prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs). The problem cannot always be prevented by a parent, a friend, or a family member. The problem starts with prescribing these drugs in the first place, and the most logical explanation is to decrease the rate at which we are prescribing them, or to stop