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Persuasive Essay On Opioids

1689 Words7 Pages

America is in the midst of an epidemic that is growing at an exponential rate: opioid addiction. Despite laws and regulations, the use and abuse of opioids is increasing at an alarming rate, raising the death toll with it. America’s opioid epidemic affects the the lives of roughly two million citizens and counting each year. Contrary to past popular belief, Doctors and pharmaceutical corporations are among the largest distributors of opioid substances and deadly narcotics. Painkillers prescribed by doctors are some of the most addictive and deadly substances in the narcotic industry. Restructuring the pharmaceutical industry to better regulate the distribution of opioid painkillers is necessary in order to send those affected by America’s opioid …show more content…

“Since 2001, the opioid epidemic has cost the federal government an estimated one trillion dollars and 2016 through 2020 alone the cost is seen to top close to 500 billion dollars. Experts estimated that the nation's annual cost from the opioid crisis stood at $29.1 billion in 2005, then doubled to $60.9 billion in 2011, and then shot to $115 billion in 2017. Per person, Opioid induced deaths cost 800 thousand dollars a piece according to financial calculations”(CNBC). The effects of Opioid addiction on families is quite drastic as reasonably assumed. In recent years, foster homes around the nation have seen an influx of kids who have either been forced to leave home or been abandoned because of a family member suffering with opioid addiction. Living with family members who suffer from opioid addiction can create financial burdens and take a toll on mental and emotional health. Countless families each year are torn apart as well from losing a family member who lost their battle to drug

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