Book contents
- The Opioid Epidemic
- The Opioid Epidemic
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Foreword
- Preface
- Part I The Origins of Addiction
- 1 A Brief History of Opioid Misuse and Addiction
- 2 Why Do Some People Become Addicted to Opioids while Others Don’t?
- 3 How Culture, Religion, and Society Impact Opioid Addiction
- 4 The Effect of Policy and Governmental Regulations on the Opioid Epidemic
- Part II Recognizing That a Problem Exists
- Part III The Treatment Plan
- Part IV Recovery
- Appendix: Additional Content and Resources
- Index
- References
4 - The Effect of Policy and Governmental Regulations on the Opioid Epidemic
from Part I - The Origins of Addiction
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 07 October 2023
Book contents
- The Opioid Epidemic
- The Opioid Epidemic
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Foreword
- Preface
- Part I The Origins of Addiction
- 1 A Brief History of Opioid Misuse and Addiction
- 2 Why Do Some People Become Addicted to Opioids while Others Don’t?
- 3 How Culture, Religion, and Society Impact Opioid Addiction
- 4 The Effect of Policy and Governmental Regulations on the Opioid Epidemic
- Part II Recognizing That a Problem Exists
- Part III The Treatment Plan
- Part IV Recovery
- Appendix: Additional Content and Resources
- Index
- References
Summary
The effect of individual governmental drug policies and regulations has, in many cases, been the main driving force behind the direction the opioid epidemic has taken in the United States and many countries around the world. Unfortunately these policies have sometimes had dramatically different effects than were initially intended. Changes in policy which allowed for increased availability of opioid medications had the unintended consequence of widespread opioid addiction and overdose deaths. Policies which aimed to crack down on the diversion of these medications from legitimate medical use resulted in the spike in heroin use as those people who were now addicted to opioids had to turn elsewhere. As demand for heroin surged, so too did manufacturing and sales, and as law enforcement targeted illicit heroin trafficking, cartels turned to the more potent and easier to hide synthetic opioids such as fentanyl and carfentanil. It seems that every governmental policy change or new regulation intended to stop the opioid epidemic is met with a creative solution by the people profiting to keep the opioid trade open.
Keywords
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Opioid EpidemicOrigins, Current State and Potential Solutions, pp. 33 - 46Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2023
References
References and Further Reading
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