Posts Tagged ‘drugs’
Are Prescribed Opioids the Culprits or the Scapegoats?
Solving the drug crisis will not be easy. However, the disenfranchised members of our most impoverished communities deserve viable solutions to their problems. It is crucial to understand the degree to which job loss and hopelessness contribute to the drug problem. Reputable data proves that the volume of opioids prescribed is not solely, or even primarily, responsible for the opioid crisis. Let’s be sure we are not using prescription opioids as the scapegoat.
Read MoreHow to Find an Addiction Treatment Provider
Molly’s Story Illustrates How Addiction Can Happen Molly (a pseudonym) was a 25-year-old woman who developed an addiction to opioids. She was initially prescribed opioids for pain by her gynecologist. Although only a small percentage of people who use opioids become addicted to them, Molly’s story illustrates how it can happen. Molly came to me looking…
Read MoreBlack Box Warnings
How Drugs Receive FDA Approval The Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) is the watchdog agency that’s responsible for testing new medications before they are approved. Drug manufacturers seek approval from the FDA after they have conducted numerous clinical trials and submitted all of their data to the…
Read MoreHow Do You Know If You Are Addicted?
Babies Can’t Be Addicted “Babies Born Addicted,” “Addicted Babies,” “Babies with Addiction,” and similar headlines appear nearly daily in the media. This is because babies exhibit horrible withdrawal symptoms if they are born physically dependent on opioids, and it pulls at our heartstrings to see them suffer. But it misleads media consumers, policymakers, and family…
Read MoreSalt Lake City Tribune Op-Ed Supports Utah House Health Bill 266
Salt Lake City Tribune Publishes an Op-Ed Supporting Utah House Health Bill 266 On June 20, 2017, the Salt Lake City Tribune published an op-ed that I co-authored with some of my colleagues. The commentary is called “Patients should not be stuck with ‘fail first’ medicine,” and we wrote it in response to Utah House…
Read MoreWhen to Say No
An article called “7 Words That Could Have Biotech and Big Pharma Very Worried,” written by Sean Williams and recently posted on The Motley Fool, tells both sides of the story. Pressure on price for pharmaceuticals is a real concern. Affordability is important. A drug can only work if patients can afford to pay for…
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