There is a serious drug epidemic in the United States and it does not seem to be decreasing, as drug overdose-related deaths keep on increasing. In 2000 there were around 17,500 deaths from drug overdose, while in 2015 there were approximately 52,500 from a drug overdose. Out of the approximate 52,500 drug overdose deaths, 63.1% of them were due to opioids. Opioid use for acute pain can often lead to long-term dependence (Rose, 2016). Studies have shown that the probability of long-term dependence dramatically increases on the 3rd, 5th, and 31st day of an opioid prescription, and it dramatically increases again after the first refill. Since the federal government’s way of combating the crisis of opioid prescriptions has been limited to guidelines, not legal requirements, many states have taken matters into their own hands to regulate opioid prescriptions. The National Institute on Drug Abuse has claimed Medication Assisted Treatments (MAT) as an effective treatment in treating opioid addictions (NIDA, 2016). Methadone, buprenorphine, and naltrexone are three of the medications used to assist opioid addiction treatment. As opioid prescriptions have increased by three times since 1999, the symptoms of pain in individuals in America has not increased (National Conference of State Legislatures, 2018).
Opioids are drugs that bind to a
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On February 8, 2016 Broome county’s district attorney’s office launched operation Save Addicts from Epidemic (S. A. F. E) which mandates that all police and emergency responders to not only be trained in how to combat an opioid overdose as part of their mandatory annual training but also carry the necessary counteracting medicine as well. This has given potential overdose victims a higher chance of survival because in many cases it is the police who respond first to a disturbance rather than Emergency Medical Services