Most People Who Misuse Opioids Don’t Have a Prescription

Most People Who Misuse Opioids Don’t Have a Prescription

http://time.com/4881191/mmost-people-who-misuse-opioids-dont-have-a-prescription/

In the latest National Survey on Drug Use and Health, government researchers documented the extent of the opioid epidemic in the U.S., providing details on which groups are most vulnerable to abuse and addiction, and the factors that drive misuse.

More than 51,000 people completed an hour long survey conducted in person by public health officials. Using those responses as a representative sample, the researchers calculated national rates of opioid use and abuse. Nearly 92 million people, or 40% of the adult U.S. population that isn’t institutionalized, reported using prescription opioids. Among them, nearly 5% said they misused them, which included everything from using opioids without a prescription to relying on the drugs for something other than the reason they were prescribed by the physician, or taking them in larger doses or more often than prescribed. Among people who misused opioids, nearly two million were addicted to the drugs or had some type of abuse disorder.

 The survey revealed how people were obtaining opioids. For those who reported misusing the drugs, 60% were using opioids without a prescription, according to the report published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

About 40% of these people accessed opioids free from friends or relatives. Among people who developed addiction or other abuse disorders, 14% said they bought them from drug dealers or strangers.

The researchers note that over prescribing of opioids can lead to excess medications that can then be passed on, intentionally or unintentionally, to others who might abuse them. Prescribing the powerful pain killers for less serious conditions can also lead to such diversion and abuse.

People said the main reason they turned to opioids was to relieve pain, which the researchers say suggests that the drugs aren’t effective in addressing pain, or are too addictive to be useful as pain relievers.

People who were uninsured or unemployed were more likely than people with health coverage or jobs to misuse and abuse opioids. Those who said their health was poor were also more likely to both use and abuse opioids than people who were healthy. Having other addictions, to drugs like heroin, cocaine, sedatives or tranquilizers, also put people at higher risk of abusing opioids, as did having behavioral conditions such as depression. Programs to reduce opioid addiction should consider people’s history of mental illness and behavioral disorders and include close monitoring of their response to opioids, say the researchers.

8 Responses

  1. 1 other point I notice,,,what the heck does/why ,,” not institutionalized,”,,,wth does this mean,,,,To me,,,they are thinking exactly what we’ve been sayen,,THEY WANT THE DAYS OF OLD BACK,,THE DAYS OF WAVERLY,,,PENNHURST,,,RE-OPEN,,,FOR THE CHRONIC MEDICALLY ILL HUMAN BEINGS WHO TAKE MEDICINE TO LESSEN PHYSICAL PAIN FROM MEDICAL ILLNESS…Their obviously thinken on that,,,,geez,, I hate it when were right sometimes,,,btw,,I wrote hhs tonight,,,,,To let them know just how stupid ,,bigots,prejudice,,,out of touch,,,corrupt use of tax monies,,they are,,but thanked them for exposing to the world how bias,prejudice,,how out of touch w/the real world of humans,,who thru no fault of their own,,have chronic medical illness that are physically painful,,,and their interpretation is we are unemployed thieves,,,Not that no employer will hire anyone who take medicines on a daily bases,,,because of the bigotry,,,about our MEDICINE,,OPIATES,,,we are unemployed,,,wow,,,,,this really shows trheir true intention,motives and prejudicial ignorance,,jmo,,maryw

  2. -Sorry this whole ,”corrupt survey,” piss me off…1]If u r medically ill,,pre-existing applies,,your premiun is tooo much,,,thus u cannot afford insurance DAHHHHHHHH,,, they label us,,drug addict unemployed /thieves,,because we are medically ill in physical pain from the medical illnes,,2]If u r in severe physical pain from say pancreatits,,your doctor has misdiagnosed u,,again ,again and again,,If u have been alloted 1 vicoden a day,,,but 1 vicoden aint cutten it as far as taken the physical pain away because it is the weakest opiate,,,,YOUR DAM RIGHT YOUR GONNA TAKE 2 OR 3,,,VICODENS TO TRY AND STOP THAT PHYSICAL PAIN,,, or say u have a oxycodone left over from a tooth surgery,,,,the physical pain is god awefull because the surgeon skrew’d up,,,r u gonna sit there sufferring or take that oxycodone,,that was prescribed for a toothache,,,???dahh !!No employer will hire any person who takes the MEDICINE opiates,,,to live life from physical pain from a medical illness,,,,,,dahhhhhhhh ,,,there are literally 10000 of truthful reasons,,,to take medicines,,,to loose your jobs,,,,,but the government has deemed none of these on this opiatephobic research as the reason for unemployment,,the reason someone would take more then prescribed,,,,,,none of this” research”even touch on ,,,,in this bullshit research…
    It does show us,,,,,,how far gone,,how OUT OF TOUCH,thee federal government has become from the reality of the medically ill,,,from the reality of HUMAN NATURE,,, which is why I bet u 1 mill,,,those tyPe of questions were not even on this opiate bias research,,i BET 1 MILL,,,NOT 1 CHRONIC PHYSICAL PAIN PERSON WAS EVEN CONSULTED ON MAKING UP THE SURVEY!!!!
    Look,,the 1st people to see the number OF thee amount of opiate medicine that was being prescriped was the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT,,, medicare,,Medicaid,,,,,sooo the $$$$$$ being paid out for a new branch of medicine,,,pain management,,,,,government didn’t like 1 bit,,,soooo,,,,now here comes klonodyn,,the dea,,doj,,,,all want a piece of pie!!!!!!!thus opiate mania,,reefer madness,,,CORRUPTION IN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS THRIVING,,,,,BUT IS LITERAL KILLING THE MEDICALLY ILL,,,,CAUSE THEY DON;’ EVEN REALIZE WE EXIST,,,,,,,,,NOR DO THEY WANT TO KNOW,,,,,HOW WE EXIST,,,,,UNLESS THEY CAN DEEM US PREJUDICEALLY,,,ITS LIKE SAYING ALL BLACKS WILL RAPE WHITE WOMEN IF GIVEN COCAINE,,,,,SAME ARCHIAC MENTALITY UP THERE IN WASHINTON.,,,KLONODYN,,,,PROP,,,,,maryw

  3. 1 more thing,,,LOOK WHO FUNDED IT!!!!!!UNITED STATES OF AMERICA HEALTH A HUMAN SERVICES,,,HHS,,,,WOW,,TALK ABOUT CORRUPTION IN AMERICA GUYS,,,,maryw

  4. psssss,,,,Doesn’t time warner own the t.v???hmm that explains thee outlet for prop,,,Funny,,bout 13 years ago,,,they did a write up on how GREAT PAIN MANGEMENT WAS,,USEING one of my old doctors on the front cover..Dr.Jonathen Kay,,,out of St.Lukes Milwaukee,,,,,,maryw

  5. Like I said before,,,UNTIL I SEE ACTUAL VIDEO’S OF THIS RESEARCH,,,THEY CAN INTERRUPT IT ANYWAY ,,OBVIOUSLY ,,THEY WANT,,,,NOT THE TRUTH,,,BUT thier INTERPRETATION,, if this bullshit research was true,,,that opiates don’t work for pain,,,,,,then I guess their is no need to be knock out for surgeries either,,,THATS HOW STUPID THEIR CONCLUSION IS,, its obvious opiatepghobic researchers,,total quackery,maryw

  6. Interestingly, the article contradicts itself when it states “People said the main reason they turned to opioids was to relieve pain, which the researchers say suggests that the drugs aren’t effective in addressing pain, or are too addictive to be useful as pain relievers.” The conclusion does not follow from the statements of those interviewed. Unexamined was the possibility that some people “misused” prescriptions by using somebody else’s left-over meds when they were uninsured and too desperately broke to be able to see a doctor. I will write the editors of Time to challenge their deliberate mischaracterization.

    • jmo,,,THIS WAS THERE END GAME …ALLLLL ALONG,,,,,,,,,,jmo,,,sorry,,ive seen in it,,20 years worth of pain management,,ive seen this w.my own eyes,,,the shrinks,,,,wanted their piece of the pie,,,,and the MEDICAL doctors weren’t letting them in,,,Soooo klonodyn lied his way in,he had/has the position of power,corrupted that purpose,that power and,bullied his way,,,snake oiled his way in,,,and has now killed over 25,000 people in 10 years,,,,When 100 commentators threw the blame exactly where it belong,,,ON HIM,, he crumbled like the snake he is,stateing,”,I never told anyone to stop opiate MEDICINE,,LET ME TOLD TO YOUR DOCTORS,”””,,thats how delusional,,away from reality he is,,,but would not even acknowledge his role in this torture/genocide of thee medically ill by torture,,,,,jmo,,i pray to god,,,us getting to the U.N 1st with TRUTH,,, will help the truth be told.,,,,,,maryw

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