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As opioid overdoses exact a higher price, communities ponder who should be saved

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Re: As opioid overdoses exact a higher price, communities ponder who should be saved

#81

Post by torpfactory »

I think we could add this to Jeff Bezos' ideas for philanthropic endeavors. Hell, it doesn't even need to be philanthropic. Amazon seems to have no problem with razor-thin profit margins: Why not create a company which has no problem making and selling generic-only drugs at razor-thin margins? There would seem to be a lot of room to undercut a business who sells for $4500 what might be produced for $20.

I think our capitalism may actually suffer from too much profit taking and not enough competition. I want the market to serve me (the consumer) not the other way around. I'm sure the producer see things differently... There doesn't seem to be a lot of appetite for companies to go after profitable businesses that don't have big margins.

Re: As opioid overdoses exact a higher price, communities ponder who should be saved

#82

Post by jtmcmc »

dredmorbius wrote: post #69

Why are the opoid manufacturers who are creating this addiction in the first place not being billed for it?

You mean like poppy plants? This addiction wasn't created by drugs - drugs are merely a coping mechanism for a world that people can't fucking deal with.

The root causes aren't opioid manufacturing it's whole slew of things from poor physical and mental health care in this country, worsening job prospects for people, a culture that ties worth and value to working hard and monetary prosperity, etc...

Re: As opioid overdoses exact a higher price, communities ponder who should be saved

#84

Post by panic »

jtmcmc wrote: post #82
dredmorbius wrote: post #69

Why are the opoid manufacturers who are creating this addiction in the first place not being billed for it?

You mean like poppy plants? This addiction wasn't created by drugs - drugs are merely a coping mechanism for a world that people can't fucking deal with. The root causes aren't opioid manufacturing it's whole slew of things from poor physical and mental health care in this country, worsening job prospects for people, a culture that ties worth and value to working hard and monetary prosperity, etc...

While people's life situation is always a factor, the drug makers ought to take some responsibility for lying about their drugs to make them seem safer. Purdue Pharma in particular: http://theweek.com/articles/541564/how-american-opiate-epide...

Re: As opioid overdoses exact a higher price, communities ponder who should be saved

#85

Post by DanBC »

jtmcmc wrote: post #82
dredmorbius wrote: post #69

Why are the opoid manufacturers who are creating this addiction in the first place not being billed for it?

You mean like poppy plants? This addiction wasn't created by drugs - drugs are merely a coping mechanism for a world that people can't fucking deal with. The root causes aren't opioid manufacturing it's whole slew of things from poor physical and mental health care in this country, worsening job prospects for people, a culture that ties worth and value to working hard and monetary prosperity, etc...

The US prescribes far more opioid medication than any other country.

> Since 2002, prescription drug deaths have outpaced those of cocaine and heroin combined. Abuse of controlled prescription drugs is higher than that of cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, MDMA, and PCP combined.

Re: As opioid overdoses exact a higher price, communities ponder who should be saved

#86

Post by toomuchtodo »

Quequau wrote: post #40
tcj_phx wrote: post #2

(this article can be read by searching for the title on http://twitter.com/ , then opening the link in a private window) > Two doses of an injectable form of naloxone, Evzio, cost $4,500, up from $690 in 2014. The price of other forms of the drug, including the nasally administered Narcan, typically range from $70 to $150 per dose, officials say. The cost of naloxone [1] is an insignificant part of the cost of revivi…

After struggling with alcoholism for decades I used Naltrexone to stop drinking five or six years ago. It wasn't a simple taper but when I had my last drink it was easier to walk away from than anything I could have ever imagined before I did it.

Thank you for posting this; it'll help me help someone who is a self destructive alcoholic.

Re: As opioid overdoses exact a higher price, communities ponder who should be saved

#87

Post by Animats »

In the UK, naloxone with an injector costs £20.58, plus £4.16 VAT and £4.95 shipping, in quantity 1. Total is about US$38. The price goes down if you order in bulk. The supplier notes "You may be able to get naloxone free of charge from your local drug service, or GP."

Note that this, like ephedrine, is an old drug, out of patent decades ago.

There's an opportunity here for a startup. The startup doesn't even have to make the drug; there are contract pharmaceutical manufacturers who can do that.[3] The startup just has to handle marketing, distribution, and FDA approvals. Here's a list of makers worldwide.[4] Auto-injectors are available from various suppliers.[5][6]

This project could be put together by a small team and would get very favorable publicity.

Then, on to replacing the Epi-Pen.

[1] http://www.exchangesupplies.org/shopdisp_prenoxad_naloxone_p... [2] https://www.fda.gov/downloads/Drugs/NewsEvents/UCM454757.pdf [3] http://www.contractpharma.com/csd/categories [4] http://naloxoneinfo.org/get-started/where-to-get-naloxone [5] http://www.medicalplasticsnews.com/news/autoinjector-landsca... [6] http://www.shl-group.com/products/shl-medical/

Re: As opioid overdoses exact a higher price, communities ponder who should be saved

#88

Post by ada1981 »

extra88 wrote: post #21
tcj_phx wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

100 years ago, politicians were tricked into trusting organized crime to tend to the health of people who are drawn to opiates. Those politicians are dead & gone, but we're still stuck with their mistake. My mother broke her wrist 6 months ago, and was given opiates to deal with the pain of having a plate put in her wrist. She did not become an opiate addict. I presume she managed to avoid becoming a junky because sh…

By "organized crime," I assume you mean something other what's traditionally thought of as organized crime, e.g. the Mafia, but I can't tell what. > I presume she managed to avoid becoming a junky because she has a pretty stable day-to-day life. While circumstance and upbringing are factors for addition, I think it's accepted that there is also a biological component; your mom may be inherently less prone to becoming…

Addiction is fundamentally about not being able to regulate ones nervous system and looking for external triggers for dopamine release.

This is almost always linked to developmental and shock trauma earlier in life.

Re: As opioid overdoses exact a higher price, communities ponder who should be saved

#89

Post by tigershark »

ivanbakel wrote: post #4

How can it be acceptable that you would declare people too expensive to save, rather than challenge the prices of a profit-making company that is bringing those costs in the first place? Shouldn't you be able to detect the sheer amount of corporate worship in such a statement before it leaves your mouth? It breaks my heart to keep reading about this epidemic, with such a consistent reaction of hatred from so many peo…

Epidemic: "a widespread occurrence of an infectious disease in a community at a particular time." I can't see how drug addiction can fit in this definition. If one of them sneezes I don't immediately feel the urge to put some shit in my veins. I think that if someone doesn't want to be saved then maybe after a while it doesn't make much sense to try to save him.

Re: As opioid overdoses exact a higher price, communities ponder who should be saved

#90

Post by extra88 »

tcj_phx wrote: post #38
extra88 wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

By "organized crime," I assume you mean something other what's traditionally thought of as organized crime, e.g. the Mafia, but I can't tell what. > I presume she managed to avoid becoming a junky because she has a pretty stable day-to-day life. While circumstance and upbringing are factors for addition, I think it's accepted that there is also a biological component; your mom may be inherently less prone to becoming…

> By "organized crime," I assume you mean something other what's traditionally thought of as organized crime, e.g. the Mafia, but I can't tell what. The Mafia and other manifestations of "traditional" organized crime is exactly what I was referring to. Two years ago, when a new friend was teaching me about her addictions, I bought Johann Hari's book, Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs [2]…

Describing criminal drug peddlers as "tending to the health" of people is a very odd way of putting it. It's also rather beside the point when talking about today's epidemic.

Having meaningful things to do is not "inherent."

I never heard of Depo-Provera before but calling it "chemical castration" and putting "birth control" in scare quotes seems like hyperbole and inflammatory. The drug is a progestin, a synthetic hormone that is administered in a number of forms. Depression is one of the possible side effects of the shot, but that doesn't necessarily mean it would exacerbate an existing condition and you've not mentioned whether the doctor was also treating her depression.

https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/birth-control/birth-...

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