Vermont's Effort to Make OxyContin Less Appealing Worked, But¦

January 16,2013

In Waterbury, Vermont, an innovation in the production of Oxycontin has made the drug harder to be abused by those addicted to the painkiller....

Vermont's Effort to Make OxyContin Less Appealing Worked, But¦

In Waterbury, Vermont, an innovation in the production of Oxycontin has made the drug harder to be abused by those addicted to the painkiller. In the past decade, painkiller abuse and overdose deaths have more than quadrupled, taking thousands of lives each year nationwide. As many states have fought to find a way to restrict the pills from being prescribed, there is finally a better solution than to remove the useful painkillers from those who truly need them.

A new manufacturing tactic for Oxycontin renders the pills into a gummy mush when crushed. Although the painkiller can be swallowed as traditionally intended, most addicts crush them up and snort them to receive an instant high. Since the pills are nearly impossible to crush into a powder form, this has deterred inclinations for drug abuse.

The problem which many in Waterbury are finding however is that as a result, since Oxycontin is so much harder to abuse, people have turned to another drug for help.

Heroin was once considered rare in the city, claiming only 2.5 deaths in a six year span. Now however, the story is different. Law enforcement have been coming into contact with more people under the influence of the old drug, and seizing pounds of heroin from illegal distribution operations. More frightening is how quickly the death toll has heightened. From the low 2.5 in a six year span, the ratio now stands at nine deaths last year, and six already this year.

The migration from painkillers to heroin is not unheard of. Other states have witnessed similar outcomes as restrictions and other deterrents have been set on the painkiller market. Drugs like heroin and meth, which are easy to manufacture and produce, are popular for œout of luck painkiller abusers. So as Waterbury is facing a new rising problem, the question remains, œHow to cut down the rate of other drugs being abuse in addition to Oxycontin¦

Additional problems when switching to other hard drugs come from the inexperience in using them. Prescription pills are highly controlled and dosed-out drugs. They are produced in safe and controlled labs with chemical makeup that does not typically change batch to batch. Heroin, meth, and cocaine however, have none of these aspects. The drugs are produced in sketchy, unclean labs and their chemical composition varies per batch and often has other poisonous chemicals added to them. Because of this, painkiller addicts who turn to these other drugs are at an extremely high risk for accidental overdose or other adverse effects, which can easily lead to death or severe permanent damage.

Waterbury, Vermont, is just one of many cities facing the problem of painkiller addicts turning to hard drugs to satisfy drug cravings. It's important that communities like these spread knowledge about the dangers of this behavior, and that rehabilitation programs provide easy-to-access outreach programs to further combat the problem of escalating heroin deaths.

____________________________________________________________

Unintentional drug overdoses is a serious matter that has led to many family tragedies and loss of loved ones. The notion of losing someone, whether it's a friend, a parent, a sibling, or a son or daughter, is a devastating one. A Center For Addiction Recovery has been dedicated for ever ten years in providing addiction treatment services and programs for thousands of families nation-wide, and has saved numerous lives as a result. Our mission is not only to treat individuals who suffer from various drug addictions, but also those who suffer from mental disorders such as ADD or ADHD, Bipolar Disorder, and Post traumatic Stress Disorder.

Center for Addiction Recovery “ Addiction Treatment Center: 1-800-570-4562

Physical, Emotional and Spiritual Recovery

390

views

PDF Print Email Report

Contact

A Center for Addiction Recovery

800-570-4562

MARK KILLAR

Featured Sections