Prescription drug abuse is nothing new, but now it's being called epidemic, "from the Hollywood hills to the hollows of West Virginia." The Drug Enforcement Agency says Vicodin and Valium cause more overdose deaths in America than cocaine and heroin combined. Victims include high-profile celebrities, poverty-stricken kids and middle-aged adults, with some doctors peddling legal drugs for no medical reason. But the same drugs alleviate real suffering. How can they be provided to people who need them and kept away from people who don't?
Abuse of Prescription Drugs Is Being Called a 'National Epidemic'
Credits
Guests:
- Scott Glover - Los Angeles Times - @ScottGloverLAT
- Jeffrey Coben - Professor of Emergency Medicine, West Virginia University
- Paul Christo - Director of Pain Training, Johns Hopkins Hospital
- Carl 'Rolly' Sullivan - Director of Addictions Programs, West Virginia University Hospital
- Sharon Brigner - Deputy Vice President of State Government Affairs, PHARMA