The Opioid Crisis Hasn’t Gone Away. It’s Just Gone Underground.
OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma, which played a key role in creating America’s opioid crisis, has dissolved. But the crisis rages on, lives are still in danger, and the profits are still flowing — now to street dealers who manufacture synthetic drugs.
A man holds a piece of foil containing fentanyl. (Jessica Christian / San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
When I inquired about my mom’s prescription drug usage, she went on the defensive.
Writing about the book The Least of Us: True Tales of America and Hope in the Time of Fentanyl and Meth had offered me an opportunity to ask about her current intake, a topic she usually avoids. I was particularly interested to know about her use of opioids.
“Well, I just took an opioid,” she said with bemusement. The term sounded alien spilling from her lips. She usually calls them “headache pills,” rendering harmless the pharmaceuticals that rest permanently on her bedside table. She imagines them as the equivalent of everyday aspirin, rather than addictive substances that have altered her mind and body over time.
Sorry, but this article is available to active subscribers only. Please log in or become a subscriber.