The Prescription Opiate That Got America Addicted to Painkillers

Psychiatrist Dr. Domenick Sportelli shares that when physicians started to see that their patients were having addiction symptoms and started to push back on the 1% claim by Purdue Pharma, Purdue and the FDA termed the reaction pseudoaddiction, which you can fix by prescribing a higher dose. The Doctors reached out to the FDA for comment and they had this to say:

It has long been a priority for the FDA to respond to the opioid crisis that has devastated families and communities across the nation. We’ve taken critical steps to address this crisis, including encouraging the development of new and effective pain treatment therapies; expanding access to naloxone and therapies to treat substance use disorders; and working to prevent the illegal sale of opioids online. We have made important progress; however, the opioid crisis has evolved and now we face a drug overdose crisis that extends beyond one class of substances. The root causes of what is often called the opioid crisis are multifaceted and include various historical, economic, and social factors. It is clear that there is no single or simple solution. Successfully tackling these challenges will require that all facets of society work together. The FDA will continue working to use our regulatory authorities along with innovative approaches to address the many complexities contributing to the public health burden of drug misuse, abuse, overdose, and deaths.

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