Did you know that chronic pain affects over seventy million Americans?

Chronic pain is a
widespread problem that most have been solving through the use of opioids. This solution has
turned into a crisis, and the government will need to intervene in order to stop it. I am against
the government banning prescription opioids for the following reasons: I believe that power
should not be given to criminals who run the black market, addicts should be given the
resources to beat their addiction, and less-addictive alternatives to opioids should be
researched and distributed.

Opioids are highly addictive drugs that relieve pain by targeting opioid receptors in the
brain. The drug can be made using the naturally occurring plant opium poppy or synthetically in
a lab. The opioid crisis began when pharmaceutical companies marketed them to the public as
safe and non-addictive. Opioids were previously reserved for people who were recovering from
major surgery or those with cancer, but after they were deemed safe for use, people with
prescriptive capabilities started to prescribe opioids at increasing rates. This leads to more
abuse and opioids gaining traction in the black market. In high doses, these drugs create a
euphoric state which leaves them prone to cause addiction and be abused. Opioids are so
dangerous because they depress heart and breathing activity and they create a strong
psychological need for them. The problem is that when people run out of prescribed opioids
they have a strong urge to get more which causes them to find other options on the black
market. In 2016, eleven million Americans abused opioids and in 2017, 115 people died a day
from opioid-related overdoses. To combat the epidemic, prescription opioids have been
reduced, but this has lead to an increase in illegal street drugs like heroin and illegally
manufactured fentanyl. The U.S. Dep. of Health and Human Services, the CDC, and the
National Institutes of Health have partnered to inform the public, conduct research, and
investigate treatment strategies for those already addicted. Meanwhile, the FBI and DEA are
working to crack down on illegal opioid manufacturers("Opioid Crisis”).

The first major consequence of banning prescription drugs has been a spike in the use
of illegal alternates. Opioids are highly addictive, and the patients who were previously
prescribed their doses are suddenly not able to get the relief they crave. One of two things will
happen. These patients will turn to alternative ways to get pain relief like the black market.
Drugs like heroin and illegally produced fentanyl are cheap and easy to get on the black market.
If these patients do not want to turn to illegal alternative, their options fairly limited and they will
have to unnecessarily struggle with their pain. The DEA has been limiting to use and production
of prescription opioids. In turn, this has caused prescription rates to plummet in the past couple
of years, but opioids usage has been rising exponentially. How is this possible? If the doctors
are not prescribing, then usage rates should be down also. The increased usage rates are
caused by the black market. The DEA has called for a reduction in the production of prescription
opioids. “There was a 25% reduction in 2017 and a 20% reduction is ordered for 2018”(Singer
and ”Stop Calling”). As one can see, the DEA has been decreasing rates of prescribed opioids
but their efforts have caused overdose rates to skyrocket. “Data from the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention show that from 2006 to 2010 the opioid prescription rate tracked closely
with the opioid overdose rate, at roughly 1 overdose for every 13,000 prescriptions. Then, after
2010, when the prescription rate dropped and it became more difficult to divert opioids for
nonmedical use, the overdose rate began to climb as nonmedical users switched over to heroin
and fentanyl. There is a dramatic negative correlation between prescription rate to overdose
rate of -0.99 since 2010(Singer,”Stop Calling”). This data shows that lower prescription rates
have actually caused an increase in overdose rates. This is because illegally produced opioids
do not have any safety regulations attached to them making them much more dangerous to use.
Prescribed opioids have been tested and produced legitimately where illegal opioids are not. In
2016, Fentanyl was the most common drug in all overdose deaths at nearly 29%, followed by
heroin at 26%(“Top Causes”). These two drugs make up more than half of all overdose deaths
and both of them are produced illegally. Banning prescription opioids have caused a spike in
illegal drug usage and an increase in overdose incidents. Banning prescription opioids has not
solved the problem but instead has made it worse.

Many people in America face chronic pain, which can be defined as any long-lasting
pain caused by past injury or health condition. Health authorities estimate that it affects more
than seventy million Americans, making it more common than heart disease, cancer, and
diabetes combined(“Preface”). With so many Americans in pain, there has to be a solution. So
far, the solution has been the use of prescription opioids, which are highly effective painkillers,
but they are also highly addictive and can cause health problems. I have been looking into a
less addictive alternative to prescription opioids. This less addictive solution to the opioid crisis
is called Kratom, a medicinal herb that has been used safely in Southeast Asia for centuries.
The only problem is that the DEA has added this potential solution to its list of Schedule 1
substances, a list that includes killers like cocaine and heroin. The DEA has labeled Kratom as
an opioid with “no currently accepted medical use” which is not totally true. Kratom is not as
addictive as traditional opioids and has a weaker effect on the brain. The herb also has the
ability to bind loosely to opioid receptors in the brain making it a good option for addicts trying to
get off opioids. Dr. Walter Prozialeck, chair of the Department of Pharmacology at Midwestern
University in Downers Grove, Illinois conducted an animal test and says the drug did relieve
pain. There have not been any human tests yet, but testimonials from the tens of thousands of
people who take Kratom state that they have not had any cravings for the drug”(Schiffman).
Hopefully, more research can be done and the DEA can recognize the benefits of Kratom.

Overdose deaths have been skyrocketing. It is known that 75% of people who died due
to an overdose were not prescribed opioids(Dunleavy). This problem goes deeper than just
banning prescription drugs. For those already addicted, medical treatment to stabilize them
while they are getting clean should be an option for all. There should be a good way to beat
opioid addiction available to the general public. Methadone is a good option for opioid addicts
because “its slow onset and long-lasting impact lessen the chances that the user will get high
from taking it. At the same time, it blocks the receptors in the brain that are stimulated by
opioids, so those using methadone do not get high even if they take heroin or morphine
too”(“Methadone”). Methadone is considered an opioid but is slower to release dopamine in the
brain making it much less likely for someone to get high from taking it. Methadone basically
suppresses the effects of hardcore opioids, like heroin, by lessening withdrawal symptoms.
When used properly, it helps users to end their addiction and get on with their lives. Methadone
has been proven to help addicts quit. “In 1964 a group of researchers discovered that heroin
addicts could avoid the drug and live more normal lives if they received a daily dose of
methadone. The methadone eased withdrawal symptoms and lessened cravings for heroin.
Better yet, people taking methadone could not get high on heroin because methadone binds to
the same brain receptors that heroin does”(“Methadone”). Eased withdrawal symptoms and
lessen cravings make for a much easier recovery. Addicts would have a much more difficult time
quitting opioids cold turkey. Methadone provides motivation for people to get their lives
straightened out. Methadone is not perfect, however; It is still an opioid and comes with
withdrawal symptoms including constipation, nausea, drowsiness, dry mouth, and the possibility
of breathing problems("Methadone”). With these effects in mind, Methadone is a good option for
addicts looking to end their addiction. If addicts get help fighting their addiction, it will reduce
overdoses and potentially end the opioid epidemic.

Some will say that the government should enact the prohibition of all opioids, but this will
cause a black market to form. The prohibition of alcohol from 1920 to 1933 actually worked in
reducing the alcohol consumption rate. Death rates from Cirrhosis, a form of liver disease, were
29.5 per 100,000 in 1911 and 10.7 in 1929. Public drunkenness also declined by 50 percent
between 1916 and 1922(Moore). Prohibition did reduce the death rate and reduced alcohol
consumption rates, but It also created a black market. Organized crime started to illegally
produced alcohol and sell it to underground bars. By banning alcohol, the government gave
power to the black market and the criminals to run it. Illegal alcohol was not necessarily more
dangerous than alcohol produced before the ban, but illegal opioids are much more dangerous
than drugs made in clean labs. Banning alcohol reduced alcohol-related deaths, but banning
prescription opioids has increased the overdose rate significantly. Prohibition would not solve
the opioid crisis, I would only make it worse through giving more power to criminals and the
black market.

The government should not ban prescription opioids. Instead, addicts should be given
Methadone to help with their withdrawal symptoms, Kratom should be made legal and used as
an alternative to opioids, and power should be taken from the black market. Illegal opioids like
heroin and fentanyl have caused over half of all opioid-related overdoses and have been on the
rise since the government’s reduction in prescription opioids. Methadone is a less-powerful
opioid that can be used to ease withdrawal symptoms for those who are trying to beat opioid
addiction. Kratom can be used as an alternative to opioids and many people say that it comes
without cravings, backed up by testimonials. Banning opioids will not solve the opioid crisis, it
will only cause overdoses to skyrocket and people with chronic pain to suffer.

Works Cited

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